


Various ChellDOS Stories

by SarcasticGayPotato



Category: Portal (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Domestic Fluff, F/F, Mild Sexual Content, and they're all separate, but each fic gets a chapter, so tagging is difficult, this is a whole bunch of small fics
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-11
Updated: 2018-03-23
Packaged: 2018-10-30 13:06:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 31
Words: 39,127
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10877403
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SarcasticGayPotato/pseuds/SarcasticGayPotato
Summary: A collection of small, ChellDOS stories I've written as a result of requests I got on my blog.





	1. Illness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chell gets sick, and GLaDOS surprises her with her reaction.

_anonymous asked: "For the Chelldos writing request: what about GLaDOS tending to Chell's injuries (of any kind)_ _and Chell is both surprised/comforted by how gentle GLaDOS handles her in such a vulnerable and weak state?"_  
  
  


Chell honestly expected injuries when she came back to Aperture.

She volunteered to test when it pleased her, and despite the fact that GLaDOS wasn’t trying to kill her, test chambers were still dangerous things. She could miscalculate a jump, get shot by a turret, or have a dangerously close call with an acid pit.

Physical injury was to be expected.

Illness was not.

  
See, Chell hadn’t given much thought to her immune system as of late. It was something that she had never really had much use for, since she had been in Aperture- a surprisingly sterile place- for as long as she could remember. As it turned out, not being exposed to anything for so long had weakened her body’s defenses, and left her quite vulnerable.

Somehow, she managed to dodge a bullet the first time she left Aperture. She didn’t get sick, and returned to Aperture shortly.

She arranged a deal with GLaDOS, and now she lived here. She wasn’t forced to test for her life, she was given a bed- NOT a sleeping pod, thank goodness-, and even a rather entertaining companion in GLaDOS.

The robot was just as snarky as before, but the tone of her sarcasm only got friendlier as the months went by.

The AI gave her mostly free rein of Aperture too, and that included being able to go outside whenever she wanted. Chell rarely took advantage of that though, as there was very little for her outside but some wheatfields.

Still, one day she decided it might be nice to poke her head outside for a little while and get some fresh air.

It wasn’t a particularly long trip, just a short walk around the wheat fields. It took little more than an hour, at most. And when Chell returned to Aperture, she felt fine.

She went back down to her room and went about her day, though as the evening approached she realized that she was far more tired than usual. She COULD go test, though she knew if she felt tired it was just a recipe for failure. She wouldn’t enjoy the experience, and GLaDOS wouldn’t get any good data from it. There was no point.

So instead, Chell picked at her dinner absentmindedly for a while, before giving up and deciding to go to bed. Perhaps she was just out of it today.

She fell asleep easily, unaware of the hell her body was about to bring upon her.

It had only taken about two or three hours for her to wake back up with a start, gasping for breath. She felt hot, like her skin was on fire. And yet she was shaking, and covered in a cold sheen of sweat. She was panting like mad, and it felt like she had just done twenty test chambers in her sleep. Her body was incredibly sore, and she was out of breath.

And incredibly nauseous, as she soon found out.

An attempt at sitting up was quickly punished as Chell found herself doubled over her bed, vainly holding onto the small trashcan that she kept nearby as her stomach removed most of its contents.

The feeling burned her throat, like she had been breathing neurotoxin all day long. The taste was vile, and it felt as if her insides had been turned upside-down.

Slowly, she fell back on the bed, her hand clumsily wiping at the corners of her mouth as she tried to get the horrid taste off her lips. This was new. And Chell already hated every second of it.

She lied there for what felt like days, though in reality it was only about half an hour before her nausea struck again and she was forced to repeat the same process. She had jumped through literal hoops, dodged bullets and fought killer AI in her time at Aperture, and yet this, this was what left her bedridden.

Chell rolled onto her side, closing her eyes tight in a vain attempt to fall back asleep and hope that this would all be over in the morning. It didn’t work. She lay there in the dark for only about five minutes before she heard her door open.

That was strange enough to get her to crack an eye open, only to see a rather familiar figure standing in front of her.

A slender android with piercing gold eyes that seemed to burn like suns in contrast to the darkness of Chell’s room.

“…I really should’ve known you were the reason for the smell down here.”

GLaDOS. Of course. This was her facility, and since she had made herself an android body, she had taken to patrolling around it from time to time. Being stuck in a chamber for her whole life really did give her the need to stretch her legs after all.

And of course that meant walking by her test subject’s room from time to time.

Slowly, the android kneeled down in front of the bed, looking at Chell with an almost concerned expression.

“…Let me take a look at you.”

The statement was far closer to a demand than any kind of question, but Chell wasn’t about to argue. She knew the core’s scanners could probably pick up what was wrong with her, and she wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

What Chell expected from all this was for GLaDOS to look her over, made some snide remark about how she ‘shouldn’t have been so stupid and gone outside when it was perfectly comfortable in Aperture’ and then leave Chell to her own devices.

As it turned out, GLaDOS proved her wrong almost instantly. The core put her hand on the human’s forehead incredibly gently, feeling the warmth that practically radiated from it.

A frown followed this, and the core seemed to be doing her best to work out if anything was seriously wrong, or if this was just a bug. Thankfully for Chell, the slight relaxation in the core’s shoulders after a minute or so seemed to point to the latter of the two options.

“It’s just a flu. I don’t know what you were walking around in up there, but clearly your body wasn’t ready to handle it. You should be fine with proper rest and care.”

As much as that comment should’ve brought Chell relief, she couldn’t seem to muster up any feeling besides one of general discomfort and pain. Everything felt sore and hot, and for some reason jumping into a pit of freezing water sounded really, _really_ good right about now.

Yet to her frustration, GLaDOS had grabbed her discarded blankets and pulled them back up on her. She shot the android a confused and annoyed look, trying to struggle and kick them back off, despite her whole body feeling like lead.

“Oh no you don’t.” The core glared at her, keeping the blankets in place. “I don’t care how hot you _feel_ , Aperture is far from warm. It’s cold down here, and you’re already trembling.”

Chell pouted, but stopped struggling. She was tired, and she knew that if she kept trying GLaDOS would have no problems with simply sitting on her legs until she stopped moving. And despite the core’s repeated fat jokes towards humans, being made out of metal didn’t exactly make her light as a feather.

So, with a couple deep breaths, Chell managed to calm herself down a small bit. And in turn, GLaDOS did too. It almost looked like the robot was concerned for her safety, and reacting out of fear for her health. But that would be… completely ridiculous. Sure, they had grown closer in the past few months, but she never pictured GLaDOS as the caring type.

And yet… Maybe she was wrong.

Slowly, the lights in the room started to turn on, stopping just short of being too bright for tired eyes. It left the chamber in a dim glow that was easy on the eyes, but bright enough to see things and not be sitting wide awake in darkness.

“Now I’m going to ask you to drink this, and please do try not to vomit it back on me.” GLaDOS had what appeared to be a bottle of water in her hand, taken from Chell’s mini-fridge.

Putting anything into her body was incredibly off putting, so Chell found herself looking at GLaDOS with a sort of pleading expression.

The core sighed, unscrewing the cap. She placed it on the nightstand momentarily, before carefully slipping her arms around Chell and helping the girl into a slightly more upright position, presumably so she wouldn’t choke.

“I won’t have you drink much, but I don’t think I need to tell you how easy it would be for you to get dehydrated like this? I could list off all the horrible things that would involve, but I’ll spare you the details.”

And with that comment, Chell found her head being gently tilted back by GLaDOS’s hand on her chin. Then, the water was pressed against her lips, slowly as to avoid any risk of choking. Chell kept her mouth stubbornly shut for a moment, but found herself slowly giving in as GLaDOS’s fingers lazily stroked the edge of her jawline. It was oddly comforting, despite being a rather small action.

She took a few sips of the cool water, finding that it felt surprisingly nice to have something to wash away the taste of stomach acid and bile in her mouth, despite the fact that she already felt uneasy at having something else in her body.

GLaDOS, to her credit, seemed to pick up on Chell’s uneasiness, and pulled away, placing the water to the side and moving the trashcan a bit closer to the girl, just in case.

Thankfully, Chell managed to hold back her nausea for the time being, sinking back into the bed with a low groan of pain.

She felt horrible, and her mind seemed to be clouded with a sickly haze. Still, breaking through that haze was a rather consistent thought. She had never seen GLaDOS act like this. And it was… incredibly odd to the girl.

The core was so… gentle. She seemed to know what to do and how to go about it, all while treating Chell with a surprisingly tender attitude. Sure, the occasional comment was a good reminder that this was, in fact, still GLaDOS and _not_ a doppleganger that had replaced her when Chell wasn’t looking.

This was no doubt the same core she had once fought. The same core who was now running her fingers through Chell’s hair, slowly detangling it.

The action was unexpected, but caused a low hum to escape Chell’s throat at just how good it felt. The core’s hand was cool to the touch, and her actions felt like a massage. She found herself trying to push into the hand, silently asking the AI to continue.

Apparently, Chell’s reaction earned a smile from the core, accompanied by a low chuckle.

“If I had known this was all it took to make you so content, I would’ve tried this ages ago.”

Her voice was low, and kept incredibly quiet. Chell was not asleep, though loud noises would be an incredibly unpleasant jolt from the more peaceful daze she had fallen into. There was no doubt in the core’s mind that in about an hour or two she’d be rubbing the back of this human as her body continued to try and fight the illness in rather violent outbursts, but for now at least, hopefully the girl could get some rest.

And Chell, though she wouldn’t think to do anything about it now, or any time soon, wanted to thank the core for all this. She had expected to spend this time curled up on her bed alone, and instead she got the opposite.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy these little fics! Some of these are a bit old, but hopefully still enjoyable. You can find these requests (or send one in yourself if you'd like) at my tumblr, 'ask-glados-queen-of-aperture'


	2. Singing Lessons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Chell is a little shit, and GLaDOS falls for her tricks.

_anonymous asked: "Hmmmmm. How about, some fluffy! Maybe Galsos teaching Chell how to sing, and the turrets try to get in on the fun : >"_  
  
  
“Excuse me, what?”

GLaDOS’s voice echoed throughout her chamber, disbelief making itself known in her tone. Surely, Chell was pulling a prank on her.

But the ‘mute’ girl who stood across from her shook her head, raising her hands to re-sign the words she had previously conveyed to the AI.  
  
_‘I want you to teach me how to sing.’_  
   
Chell’s expression was difficult to read, though she showed no signs of silently laughing this off and admitting that it was nothing but a joke. Instead, a small smile sneaked its way onto her face, looking almost… hopeful.

GLaDOS squinted her optic, sizing Chell up for a moment before responding.

“Why? You’ve never spoken, so why are you suddenly so enamored with the idea of singing?”

Chell paused, her expression shifting into one of seemingly deep thought, before stretching into a grin once more.  
  
_‘Because you’ve sung to me before and it was very pretty. I’d like to try.’  
_

If a giant chassis could only blush, GLaDOS would be as red as a tomato. Since she couldn’t express embarrassment in this fashion, the core’s head moved back and forth a little, and a gentle hum escaped her processors.

“Flattery will get you nowhere!”

She scoffed, though the slight lilt in her voice seemed to give her away, as Chell only grinned further, knowing her comment had gotten to the core in the exact way that she intended it to.

“…You’re actually serious?”

A nod was given in response.

“…Fine then.”

Chell jumped into the air with a fistbump, expressing her excitement without a single word.

GLaDOS wasn’t completely sure why she agreed to do this, but that reaction alone made it worth it. Somehow.

“Let’s begin with some basic warm-ups, I’m sure even you can’t mess that up.”

The robot cleared her throat, despite not needing to. Slowly, she let out a few basic notes, letting them hang in the air slow and careful, waiting to hear the joined voice of her human.

Of course, there was none.

Chell simply tilted her head, as if confused.

“What? You really don’t understand? Honestly, do I have to spell it out for you? Oh wait, I basically did. Here, let me try something that I’d hope you remember.”

GLaDOS changed her pitch a small bit, starting to wordlessly sing the tune of her little turret opera. The same one she had sent Chell off with in the first place. It was a pleasant melody, and of GLaDOS’s own writing, every bit of it. However at the time she had her turrets sing it in her stead, as for some reason she had found herself unable to sing at the time. Now, she was perfectly able.

This tune, seemed to spark something in Chell, who nodded a little upon hearing it, though made a nonchalant gesture that vaguely meant something along the lines of, ‘I’m still not getting it.’

GLaDOS huffed, pausing her singing for a brief moment, thinking, and then promptly jerking her head up, getting an idea.

“Alright, if this doesn’t help you understand, I’m giving up.”

A couple panels shifted behind GLaDOS, and what was moved forward caused the girl to momentarily tense up, furrowing her eyebrows.

About five turrets were now placed at GLaDOS’s side, and while they all clearly saw Chell, thankfully, none of them made any attempt to shoot her. That was, at the very least, a little relaxing for the human.

Thankfully, any tension in Chell’s body was quickly removed, as the air was suddenly filled with GLaDOS’s voice once more, this time, with turret accompaniment.

It was the same song, though now GLaDOS was singing the lyrics as well, nearly causing Chell to melt into the floor. No robot should have a voice that silky. It just wasn’t fair to mankind.

The song was slow, affectionate, and drawn out in all the right ways. Truly, an opera that only Aperture was capable of. And unfortunately, it was over all too soon for Chell’s liking.

“So? Do you understand?”

GLaDOS sounded hopeful, and her voice was almost breathy, like the act of singing had actually taken breath out of her non-existent lungs.

Chell looked up, meeting the robot’s optic, and with a grin that rivaled that of a smug fox, shook her head.

“Well what was the point of-”

GLaDOS stopped herself from going on a rant about Chell’s obvious brain damage, studying the human a little closer. She was grinning, and showed no signs of even trying to sing.

“…You. You were just trying to make me sing for you again, weren’t you?”

This time, she earned a nod, followed by Chell bolting out of the room as fast as possible, trying to avoid the wrath of GLaDOS that she knew was about to be upon her.

Completely worth it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note: These stories are NOT connected. They might reference each other at times, but they aren't directly connected to each other. Hence why Chell is mute sometimes, and in other stories she might not be, or why GLaDOS is an android in some, or her chassis in others.


	3. Protective

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One of the cores is a bit persistent when flirting with Chell, and GLaDOS isn't happy about it.

_anonymous asked: "What about a protective Glados for one of those writing requests?"_   
  


GLaDOS wasn’t sure why she was letting them stay here. A group of corrupt, useless cores, one of which nearly got them all blown up, and should be floating in space. And yet here they all were, in her facility.

Why and how had this all happened? Chell.

  
If GLaDOS hadn’t grown so attached to the human in the past year, she would’ve considered strangling her for this incredibly stupid decision.

A little over a year ago, GLaDOS had made peace with the former test subject, and set her free from Aperture. A month or two later, Chell came back, explaining that the outside world was almost completely barren, and she had no place to be out there.

GLaDOS let her in, and things went from there.

They were no longer ‘scientist and test subject,’ but instead something a little more. Neither of them had tried to approach the subject directly and put a label on it, but since the creation of GLaDOS’s android body, Chell had taken to holding her hand quite a bit.

And while that _definitely_ meant nothing, it didn’t stop the sparks of jealousy that had started to form regarding Chell and one of those cores.

Wheatley was being kept under very close watch- even if Chell wouldn’t let GLaDOS torture him, she agreed that he wasn’t to be trusted-, but all the other corrupt cores hadn’t technically done anything wrong, and were being left to their own devices. So long as they didn’t cause trouble, GLaDOS didn’t care what they did.

Well, she didn’t care before. Now, she cared a little. Only a little. …A lot.

The Adventure core, or, ‘Rick’ as he called himself, had proved to be of a flirtatious nature from the moment GLaDOS first saw him. She thought nothing of it, as he had tried to hit on her once and she threatened to let her pet birds pick his wires apart, and that encouraged him to never try it again.

However that didn’t stop him from hitting on Chell.

In the beginning it was small comments, calling her pretty or offering to help her with whatever she was doing- despite not having any arms. Those didn’t bother GLaDOS.

Then, it was a little more obvious. Flirtatious jokes that _could_ be written off as nothing but semi crude humor, but had started to get the central core’s attention. Chell would occasionally respond to them with a silent chuckle, and GLaDOS couldn’t tell if it was simply her attempt at being polite, or if she genuinely found that core amusing.

Still though, GLaDOS said nothing. She only watched.

Though after about a month, it had gotten ridiculous.

The small comments and flirtatious jokes had turned into pick-up lines and obvious innuendos, and became far more frequent.

Chell hadn’t seemed to react positively or negatively to them, but GLaDOS was grinding her teeth together every time she heard them.

She attempted to make this obvious with a few well timed death glares and rude remarks towards the corrupt cores, but he didn’t seem to pick up on it.

After a while, the core couldn’t help but wonder if Chell wanted this attention. Maybe she did. Maybe she had no interest in GLaDOS whatsoever, and decided that a metal ball was better suited to be her romantic interest than a NOT corrupt, vaguely human shaped android who was more than willing-

She was getting ahead of herself, and decided to blame that particular train of thought on Caroline.

Still, she had a plan. She was going to ask Chell about it directly, no beating around the bush. If the girl wanted the Adventure core’s advances, GLaDOS would back off. Well, she’d silently seethe from her chamber, but that was as close to backing off as she would get.

But if it turned out the former test subject wasn’t interested in Rick’s flirting, GLaDOS was ready to use the corrupt core as a bowling ball.

She was hoping for the latter.

It wasn’t difficult to find Chell- GLaDOS had cameras basically everywhere, and Chell never made any attempt to hide from them-, and that meant it was easy to find Rick as well. He wasn’t supposed to be moving around, but somehow he managed to convince ATLAS and P-Body to move him around from time to time, so his location occasionally changed, often into places that Chell would frequently spend time in.

And so it took GLaDOS all of ten minutes to approach the room that the two of them were currently in. She paused right before entering, listening in on the conversation before barging in.

“What’d ya say pretty lady? How about you let ol’ Rick show you a good time?”

A comment that, while not unusual for the core, still managed to make GLaDOS’s blood boil.

She slowly walked towards the open door, trying to get a glimpse of Chell’s expression before either her or Rick noticed her.

The Adventure core was facing away from her, and Chell was in full view. She was giving a rather awkward looking smile, and her shoulders looked tense. She didn’t appear afraid or ready to hurt the corrupt core, but she certainly seemed uncomfortable.

That was more than enough motivation for GLaDOS on the other hand, who briskly walked into the room, sparing Chell a brief glance before roughly grabbing Rick by the handle and turning the orb around to face her.

“Woah-! Hey there boss lady, what’s the problem-”

GLaDOS didn’t let him finish his sentence, shutting him up with a glare that almost burned holes in the metal that made up Rick’s body.

“I thought you might need a little _checkup_ on that optic of yours. It appears to be **_broken_**.”

She hissed these words out, her free hand moving to rest near his optic, dangerously close to digging her fingers into it and breaking it.

“O-oh uh, I didn’t… notice anything wrong with it?”

She watched the normally fearless Adventure core’s optic shrink in what appeared to be mild terror, and she had to resist breaking her expression and smirking.

“Is that so? Last time I checked, anyone with a working optic can tell when a human is clearly _not interested_. So I’d advise you get that checked out.”

With this comment she dropped the core, causing him to let out a large, metallic ‘thud’ upon hitting the ground. He’d be fine, if a little dazed.

With a small huff of triumph, GLaDOS turned to face Chell. She honestly expected some kind of disapproving look for threatening the core, but instead she was met with an almost relieved expression.

The human walked over to her, grabbing the android’s hand for a moment, giving it a small squeeze, before letting go and signing a quick ‘thank you.’

GLaDOS couldn’t help but let her expression soften a small bit, and she turned her face away, not wanting to face the girl head on. She had not built this android with the ability to blush, though the telltale increase in her body temperature and respective hum from her processors overheating was a good enough indicator of the same expression.

“…Come on, I’ve got some test chambers for you to look at. I think you might find them to your liking.”


	4. Hammock

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chell and GLaDOS find an unconventional way to share affection, with Chell finding a new spot for naps in the process.

_anonymous asked: "For some reason I imagine GLaDOS being like a big hammock that Chell takes naps on, while GLaDdy rocks her to sleep and maybe sings softly. And sometimes if she wants Chell close to her, GLaDOS will just scoop her up and plop her down on her back but won't say anything out of embarrassment (cuz she has to be the indifferent stoic one of the two) Fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiic?"_  
  


Chell learned a lot of things in her time spent at Aperture. How to remove bullets with nothing but your bare hands and a broken pencil, how to annoy god-like AIs by finding paint and drawing all over the walls, and how to solve puzzles that would leave most humans stumped or dead.

But by far the most interesting- and least practical for any normal person- skill she had learned in the facility was how to be affectionate with a 5-ton robot that hangs off the ceiling.

  
GLaDOS was a giant creature, towering over Chell easily, and made movements more akin to a large serpent than a human. Not to mention she was rather bulky, and didn’t physically resemble a human in the slightest.

That didn’t change Chell’s love for the robot- something that had taken years to develop, despite their uneasy beginnings, though it did make day to day shows of that love a bit unusual.

Chell had proved herself to be fully capable of speech in the time they spent together, being a selective mute rather than having it as something she was born with, but her physical ability to speak didn’t mean she did it often.

On occasion she’d speak up if it was important or if she wasn’t sure how to get it across without words, but even then it was few words, and far between.

So her professing her love for the central core through long, thought out speeches wasn’t happening.

And while she certainly did her best to give GLaDOS small kisses on the side of her faceplate, the action had to be a quick, chaste peck, as anything else was awkward and difficult to execute on both sides.

Sure, these were pleasant, but it wasn’t enough. Aperture was a lonely place, and physical closeness was something desired on both sides, even if neither of them spoke up about it directly.

The question of what else they could do lingering in their minds for awhile, a few months at the very least. Until Chell figured something out, admittedly, on accident.

She had been fussing around with her Portal gun in GLaDOS’s chamber- tweaking it a little, as she felt that the trigger had been a little loose lately and intended to tighten it- unwilling to have GLaDOS let the reassembly machine fix it or make her a new one- when she accidentally shot a portal on the ceiling. She had been about to move it, when she noticed the positioning of it. Directly above GLaDOS’s back, which was curved downwards as always.

Most people would probably look at this situation and think to themselves that moving the portal and going about their day was a far better idea than whatever Chell was planning, but Chell was far from being ‘most people.’

So naturally she shot a portal on the wall she had been sitting next to, stepped through it, and landed directly on her robotic companion, who had been far too distracted doing science to pay attention to what her human had been up to.

However, this _definitely_ caught her attention.

_“WHAT THE-”_

The robot let out a shrill shriek of surprise, instantly jerking up, and nearly shaking Chell off her, had the human not grabbed onto whatever part of the core that she could reach and held on for dear life. A silent chuckle rose in her throat, and she couldn’t help smiling. She knew GLaDOS wasn’t angry. Surprised, clearly, but Chell knew what the AI was like when she was angry, and this wasn’t it.

“What on _earth_ are you doing?! My chassis is not a playground!”

GLaDOS vainly seemed to be trying to turn her head around to face the girl, though she was failing miserably. She had thankfully slowed her movements though, proving that despite her comment, she wasn’t actively trying to remove the girl. If she wanted to do that, Chell would be on the floor right now.

Slowly, Chell inched forward, moving closer to GLaDOS’s head, finding a small nook in the core’s body that looked almost like a seat. So of course, she settled down with little hesitation. It was a bit awkward at first, trying to find a spot where she wasn’t sitting on anything too important, but eventually found a rather comfy position that felt almost like a hammock. A big, very warm hammock.

A small sigh of contentment escaped her throat, and she purposely nuzzled her companion, making sure to get across that she was quite happy with her newfound spot, as was silently asking if GLaDOS would allow this, or if she found it too irksome to deal with. Chell wouldn’t want to cause her partner discomfort of course, even if it was only in jest. They had spent far too much time building up trust when it came to _not_ harming each other, Chell didn’t want to damage that with a silly thing.

To her relief, GLaDOS let out an over exaggerated sigh- despite not needing to breathe, making the sound only for show and _completely_ pointless- turning a camera to look at Chell properly.

“…Fine. If lying up there makes you happy, then by all means, get comfortable. Live up there for all I care, just don’t start sweating on me.”

That comment, though fully drenched in GLaDOS’s trademark sarcasm, was a very good indicator to Chell that her partner wasn’t just doing this out of the sheer kindness of her heart. While the core wasn’t very good at expressing these things through words, Chell was certain that the AI was seeking the same closeness that Chell was, and might agree with her that this, no matter how crazy of an idea it had originally seemed to be, might actually be a good fit for them.

And from that day on, this became their new normal.

Granted, they _had_ found some easier ways to go about it, such as having GLaDOS lower her body to the ground and allow Chell to climb up instead of having her rely on portals, as that method could result in injury on either side, should Chell land badly.

Chell would simply walk up to the core and give her a few gentle taps on the side of her chassis, and GLaDOS would allow her to climb up.

The girl found it was a nice place to sit if she simply wanted to brainstorm, or even watch whatever it is GLaDOS was doing on her monitors. But what it was truly fantastic for, was taking naps.

Her eyes would start to droop and she’d begin to yawn, and within minutes GLaDOS could catch on to her exhaustion, and quickly adjust to make herself better suited as a cuddling companion/sleeping spot. She’d make sure to avoid any sudden movements, quieted herself down and avoided yelling at the co-op bots-no matter how infuriating they could be- and if Chell caught her in a good mood, she’d occasionally take it upon herself to aid the girl in a peaceful rest.

A gentle sway of her body back and forth, a slow, calm rocking that was paired wonderfully with the quiet _‘hum’_ of the core’s processors and warmth of her body. It wasn’t the most conventional method of helping someone to fall asleep, but it was effective. For Chell at least.

And while this was especially rare, Chell had gotten the AI to sing for her. Only a few times, as GLaDOS was often too busy to pause what she was doing to think of a melody, but it wasn’t completely impossible.

  
In particular, Chell noted that the core seemed to be more inclined to sing if she noticed that her human was having trouble falling asleep. Whether it was due to a restless mind, or, more commonly, she had been previously woken due to a nightmare of some kind, and found it difficult or unsettling to fall back asleep.

When this happened, GLaDOS would spend about a minute or two in complete silence, trying to think of a melody to sing or hum, before starting off softly, letting the sound of her songs hang in the air for a few beginning notes, as if asking Chell to try and get comfortable while the core attempted to lull her to sleep.

The best times were when the AI combined both this, and the slow sway and rocking of her body, resulting in one of the most gentle actions Chell had ever seen come from such a massive, powerful creature.

It was always nice to see GLaDOS’s usual forms of affection- which often came in the form of compliments disguised as insults or attempts at recreating Chell’s favored foods-, but there was something about this that was just… comforting.

And as it turned out, GLaDOS had taken to it quite nicely as well, as after awhile, she started instigating these little cuddle sessions on her own.

Chell had just been sitting elsewhere in the chamber, when seemingly out of nowhere, she felt one of GLaDOS’s claws grab her around the waist. It as loose enough not to hurt, but tight enough to keep her from falling.

The former test subject couldn’t help the small noise of surprise that had escaped her as a result of this, surprised to suddenly be in the air.

It didn’t last long, as within a few seconds, Chell found herself placed onto GLaDOS’s back without a single word from the AI. In fact, the core seemed to be trying her very hardest to appear busy, and like she hadn’t done anything at all, almost like she was… embarrassed.

That earned a small smirk from Chell, who scooted a little closer to the robot’s head, running her hand over it in a gentle caress.

If the AI wanted some affection, all she needed to do was ask.

Though to be fair, neither of them were very good at expressing what they wanted, they often just stumbled into it, one way or another.


	5. Trust

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With so much baggage between them, can Chell and GLaDOS find peace and learn to trust each other?

_anonymous asked: "I really like the theme of trust when it comes to ChellDOS. Chell needs to trust that GLaDOS won't try to kill/hurt her just like GLaDOS has to trust that Chell wont murder her again. Can you use your gay magic— I mean writing skills?"_   
  


Chell never thought she would come back.

She struggled for so long to leave, to be set free, only to be met with disappointment.

The world above Aperture was dead. She could not find a single living human, buildings were destroyed and overrun by plants, and even animals seemed to be in scarce numbers. The world had aged while Chell had remained the same, frozen in time as the world wasted away.

There was nothing for her here.

And regardless of this fact, if she had escaped Aperture before she was thrown into the depths of the facility’s past with nothing but her portal gun and a talkative potato, she would’ve stayed on the surface. Let herself die up here alone, rot away knowing that she was, at the very least, free from Aperture’s grip.

  
But things were different now.

Chell still had no affection for Aperture, nor what the company had done or stood for, even back in the day.

No, she had no positive feelings for the facility itself, it was the ruler of the facility that she had grown a soft spot for.

GLaDOS, of all creatures, had earned Chell’s respect, at the very least. And, in a way, they had formed a strange bond while traveling old Aperture.

Chell had seen the change in GLaDOS, and that was what changed her own opinion of the core.

Maybe it was the sudden realisation and understanding of the core’s past, or maybe it was watching the AI evolve.

She saw the seemingly cold, unfeeling core soften and open up, bit by bit. She was no longer in control, she was humbled, and was forced to see the world through different eyes.

In a moment of sheer curiosity, Chell had looked down at the potato, staring into the golden optic that had become something she had only ever seen as belonging to an unfeeling enemy, yet now… She saw a person. Not a robot, not a machine, a person.

And while she never could be sure, Chell believed that GLaDOS had done the exact same thing, in that same moment.

However, this newfound partnership hadn’t meant that they were suddenly as thick as thieves. GLaDOS had willingly let her go, and Chell was happy to leave. They both wanted as much distance as possible. Staying too close brought up questions and feelings that neither of them wanted to address.

Yet here Chell was, standing once more in front of the old metal shed, staring at its rusted door.

The outside world had nothing left for her, but Aperture did. Now it was just the question of whether or not GLaDOS would even let her in.

Believe it or not, she did.

And Chell was soon face to face with an old enemy. Though that term hardly applied to them anymore. When she descended into Aperture, she was met with the core’s usual sarcasm, yet it was almost endearing this time. Almost.

“I didn’t think you’d come crawling back so quickly. Miss me already?”

Chell held her head up high, refusing to let the comment shift her stony expression, despite the slight urge to let it shift upon seeing the core. No longer was she hanging off the ceiling, but instead, standing in front of the elevator in an android body that looked far too human for being made of metal.

The elevator door slowly opened, and neither of them moved an inch.  
  
“…Well, if you’re going to stay here, you might as well step out of that elevator, you can’t stay there.”

GLaDOS backed away, never turning her back on Chell as she moved. And once there was a good amount of distance between them, Chell exited the elevator. Trust was not something that they possessed for each other yet. But today was the start of a very long journey.

  
It had not taken long for the two of them to end up staring each other down once more, dancing on the brink of confrontation. Chell had been messing around and got her hands on the portal gun, and had brought it into GLaDOS’s chamber without a second thought.

GLaDOS had practically freaked. She concealed it to a certain extent, but Chell saw the change in expression on her newly crafted face. She had drawn back defensively, and her eyes looked positively icy. She still remembered all too well what Chell had done with that portal gun in the past.

Chell hadn’t caught on at first. Instead, she too found herself getting defensive, assuming that GLaDOS was getting ruffled for no reason, and taking the core’s defensive stance as a warning before an attack. Chell too had plenty of reasons to be skeptical of GLaDOS, as the murder attempts were still fresh in her brain whenever they ended up like this.

“…Get that gun out of here.”

GLaDOS hissed, not daring to move.

Chell narrowed her eyes, confused for a moment.

“… _Now_.”

The core was not screaming at her, nor was she threatening Chell with turrets or deadly neurotoxin. She was uneasy rather than particularly angry, and appeared almost… afraid?

That was not something Chell had come to associate with the AI, though the pieces were starting to come together in the human’s mind. GLaDOS had proven herself to be more than capable of showing emotion, and fear had definitely been one of them.

Chell looked down at the gun in her hands, and it finally clicked. She quickly glanced up at GLaDOS, wondering for a moment if she should apologize. Instead, she quickly rushed out of the room, not looking back.

  
More time passed, things were getting better. They had actually sat down and talked. About… everything. But mainly, what their relationship would be. Chell-who wasn’t actually talking, but instead preferring to write things down and show them to the core- had finally been able to get some answers from GLaDOS, who admitted to her uneasiness around the girl, and Chell agreed likewise. At least now they knew, and could try to work on it.

They both expected this to take time, and thankfully time was something they had a lot of.

What neither of them expected however, was the rather… confusing feelings that had started to surface regarding one another.

Chell would never know this, but GLaDOS had harbored an… interest in Chell for a long time. But that interest was far, far from anything… safe. It had been a hatred, an obsession, a _craving_. It had died down after her time in a potato, and she assumed she’d be able to be rid of the feeling completely. And that was partly true. The obsession and the hate started to disappear as time went by, but they were replaced by different emotions. Something warm and strange feeling, like a tightness in her chest. Something she had no idea that Chell was experiencing at the same time.

Of course, this matter, did not get discussed. Not verbally anyway.

  
It grew stronger as time passed, and eventually, Chell grew tired of simply letting it be.

They had both tried to practice touching each other as a part of their trust building, even though each interaction had been very brief, and barely more than a brush of the fingers against each other.

Chell decided to change that.

She approached GLaDOS carefully, making herself known by walking towards the core head on, having learned to never sneak up on her. She cleared her throat a little, looking up at the AI and gesturing with her hand for the robot to come closer.

“What is it now? You’ve already had dinner, you aren’t getting seconds.”

Chell rolled her eyes, scoffing slightly under her breath.

Once the core had gotten close enough, she rummaged through her jumpsuit pockets to find the pre-written note that she made for this.

_‘Can I try something?’_

“Well you’re going to need to do a better job of explaining, for one.”

GLaDOS responded with snark, though her tone held no bite. It hadn’t for awhile actually, now that Chell thought about it. Instead, the sarcastic comments and remarks that many people would find quite rude had shifted. Chell wasn’t offended by them, yet she didn’t need to ignore them anymore either. She found herself smiling at half of them, like this was an old joke between her and the core.

Still, GLaDOS was right. She ought to explain herself better.

She pointed to her hand, then gestured to GLaDOS.

To her surprise, the core caught on instantly, her eyebrows raising slightly as her golden optics studied Chell.

“…Alright, try whatever it is you want.”

That came as even more of a surprise, though it was quite the pleasant one. It wasn’t often that GLaDOS put that much faith in her. She didn’t want to mess this up.  
  
Like many times before, she carefully reached out and touched GLaDOS’s hand. The core tensed for a moment, before relaxing. This was not uncharted territory. Slowly, Chell moved, lacing her fingers with the AI’s, constantly watching the android’s face for any signs of discomfort.

She found none.

Instead, the core looked at her with surprise, and a hint of something else. Contentment maybe?

Chell wasn’t sure. But she held this touch for awhile, liking the warmth that roared up in her chest that it caused. Aperture was often so cold, and it had been so long since Chell had been around other humans, she had forgotten what physical affection had felt like.

Minutes went by, maybe even hours. It was so hard to tell time down here, but it felt like years had passed when GLaDOS pulled away. She was slow in her actions instead of her usual jerky movements when it came to this sort of thing. She was relaxed. A relaxed GLaDOS was NOT something Chell saw often. Even if the core was in a good mood, she was hardly relaxed.

“…That… wasn’t as horrible as I had expected. Perhaps… we should continue to study this tomorrow.”

Chell smiled. That was the best reaction she could possibly hope for.

And study it they did. Step by step, they put themselves on display for the other, showing their weakness just long enough for the other to study it, and try to learn how to adapt to it.  
A little over a year later, they were both surprised with their progress. They weren’t perfect, they knew that. Chell was rather jumpy about her neck being touched, and GLaDOS was still a little uneasy whenever Chell was holding a Portal gun or anything that could be used as a weapon.

But despite that, they were proud enough of the steps they had taken as is.

Chell found herself standing in her room, waiting for the core. They had planned to spend some time together, and GLaDOS promised to meet her here. And, perfectly on time, a knock on the door sounded, before it opened on its own. Knocking wasn’t necessary for someone who controlled the whole facility, but Chell liked to know where the core was if they were going to be interacting. No surprises.

And so, as GLaDOS approached her, she’d give a brief, verbal warning before touching the girl.

The AI carefully wrapped her arms around Chell’s waist, keeping her grip loose and relaxed, as to not make the human feel trapped. Gently, she pressed her forehead against the ex-test subject, giving her a sort of nuzzle that Chell quickly returned.

“…Hey.”

The core smirked, looking down at Chell as she spoke.

“Is this all you had planned? When you said you wanted to spend time together, I didn’t think you meant you just wanted to stand here.”

Chell rolled her eyes, a smile tugging at her lips. She didn’t want to pull away to grab a pencil and paper, so instead she simply mouthed the words, knowing full well that GLaDOS could read her lips very well.

_‘Well I wasn’t planning on standing, but I have a perfectly nice sofa that we could move this to.’_

Chell watched as the core’s optics seemed to gleam, almost sparkling with amusement.

“…Can I pick you up?”

Despite the affection that was being shared between them, both of them never failed to ask before changing their position or form of affection. They cared for each other, no doubt, but sudden movements could be unnerving for both, especially ones that involved direct physical contact. However with proper warning, it was welcomed.

Chell nodded, very carefully moving her arms to loosely wrap around the core’s neck as she found herself scooped up into the cool metal arms of her partner.

It was strange in a way, to finally be able to give her trust to someone who, many months ago, she wouldn’t have let touch her. She supposed GLaDOS felt the same.

Yet, as she found herself being set down on the soft cushion of the couch, and she moved closer to the core who joined her moments after, she found that she didn’t care. What did it matter how things had been? It was time to enjoy the now. She wasted little time joining the metallic woman’s hand with her own, and gently resting her head against the core’s chest, who let out a soft hum of contentment at her actions.

Trust had taken time to begin, and it would take even longer to keep going, but it had been worth it.


	6. Misspoken

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stress weighs heavily on anyone's shoulders, that includes GLaDOS. And sometimes, stress makes you say things you normally wouldn't.

_anonymous asked: "Can you please make a fanfiction of one of your post you made a while back it was like glados was getting frustrated and calling one of the testing bots "chell" on accident and realized her mistake, thanks!"_   
  
  


It had been a long day.

GLaDOS did not feel exhaustion, but for lack of a better word, she was tired. Her processors hummed loudly as she found herself getting more and more agitated, the constant buzz only making her annoyance worse, which further worsened the cycle.

She hadn’t done _anything_ productive today. Every experiment she was doing? Failed. A complete dead end. And to make things even worse, Orange and Blue were driving her insane.

She had never been overly fond of the two, though she put up with them for the sake of making them test. She had no one else ~~_after **she** left_~~ that she could use for testing, so they were the best bet she had for getting science done.

However today, they seemed to be doing everything in their abilities to make her life hell.

Each test chamber she put them into took them _hours_ to finish, no matter how seemingly simple it was. They’d take their sweet time looking around the room, trying things that obviously wouldn’t work, and _talking_ to each other. Just having idle chatter, sitting around ignoring the work that GLaDOS had for them.

The core had blown them up for this. Multiple times. They’d get back to work shortly after, but eventually they’d just end up talking again. They were making their own choices, ignoring her.

And worst of all? They looked happy. They had each other to talk to, excitedly going back and forth about who knows what.

Her taunts didn’t seem to do anything to dampen that excitement.

She wanted her control back. She wanted some kind of power over these two that she could hold onto.

 

_~~**She wanted to have someone like that** ~~ _

 

The AI’s processors hummed louder, until she could barely hear herself think anymore. Her brain felt like an angry hornet’s nest, buzzing louder and louder until she was ready to bang her head against a wall to try and make it stop. She didn’t try this, thankfully.

However, as the day had turned into night, and the co-op bots were STILL only on their fifth chamber, she felt her anger boil over. Orange in particular was messing around with her portal gun, playing with it like some kind of toy.

Quickly, GLaDOS turned on her mic to yell at the bot, as was common for these little testing sessions. What wasn’t normal, was her not thinking about her words before she spoke them. Normally, she thought out what she would say before throwing insults or complaining, making sure they were witty and well thought out, or at the very least, hopefully rude enough.

This time though, she did not put that much thought into it.

 

_“JUST FINISH THE TEST CHELL!!”_

 

Her voice echoed through her chamber, and the words dawned upon the core. She froze, her chassis going rigid and deadly still.

Both of the testing bots had stopped what they were doing as well, and now stood almost uncomfortably, avoiding looking at any of the cameras. Their optics gave them away though, as they had widened considerably with surprise. They knew that name. They knew who it belonged to. They just didn’t know that name was still lingering on their boss’s tongue.

Slowly, sheepishly, both bots turned to the testing chamber, and started getting to work actually figuring it out instead of goofing off.

They were quiet, but GLaDOS was dead silent. She didn’t speak another word to them, or to anything in the facility. She simply hung there, staring at the screens without really seeing them.

Why was it that even long after she was gone, Chell continued to haunt her thoughts? No matter how much distance was put between them, the human remained strong in GLaDOS’s memory, taunting her.

No doubt the ex-test subject had moved on. Gotten as much space between herself and the facility as possible, and done what she could to simply forget what had happened down there, and leave any thoughts of GLaDOS herself buried underneath the ground with the rest of Aperture’s regrets.

But GLaDOS couldn’t forget. She couldn’t forget until she moved on, and she hadn’t been able to do that yet.

She wasn’t sure if she ever would.


	7. Feline

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> GLaDOS has some mannerisms that Chell wasn't aware of.

_anonymous asked: "So a while ago you did a headcanon(?) of GLaDOS basically being a giant cat that purrs when pet and knocks Chell over with her giant head when she doesn't get the proper attention. Can thee write a fic that kind of centers/explores dat idea?"_   
  
  


Living with a robot wasn’t easy. It was weird, having a giant AI as your living companion, and Chell had always expected it to be a little difficult to get used to. They found ways to work things out and show affection, sure, but it was the… mannerisms of her metal partner that were incredibly difficult to get used to.

First and foremost, half the time it felt more like she was living with an enormous cat than an ‘all knowing AI.’

It wasn’t obvious at first; GLaDOS tended to be a bit secretive with… well, basically everything about herself. She put up a front for awhile, but after Chell had come back and started living at Aperture of her own volition the core had started to relax and act normal. Well, as ‘normal’ as she could get.

The two of them had even gotten kind of close, in a strange way. Little bits of physical affection were shared here and there, until eventually, Chell noticed something.

GLaDOS… purred. Not in an immediately noticeable way, but _definitely_ there.

Chell had been standing beside the AI while she worked, absentmindedly stroking the core’s head. She searched around for awhile, trying to find a spot that would earn a positive reaction from GLaDOS. She expected the core to voice her approval, or perhaps request that Chell continue to caress that spot in particular. Instead, a soft purr escaped the giant metal creature.

It was low, and very quiet, but it was helped by GLaDOS pushing her head ever so slightly into Chell’s hand, prompting the girl to continue to pet her without the need for words.

Chell had been surprised, but went along with it. She moved her hand around a little, trying to see if she’d get different reactions. Some spots would cause the robot to stop, and some would make her purr a little louder, showing her preference.  
However, after trying this out day after day, Chell decided that yes, this was just a normal reaction for the core. GLaDOS never said anything about it, and Chell wasn’t sure if she wanted to ask.

As Chell would soon find out, this wasn’t the only thing the core did.

They had fallen into a routine at this point, Chell would come into GLaDOS’s chamber, watch her work, and pet her for awhile. It was entertaining enough, and to her surprise, GLaDOS liked the attention.

In fact, she would dare say GLaDOS had gotten accustomed to it. And so, Chell was watching the co-op bots test in the core’s chamber, and found herself a little distracted. The test chamber looked particularly difficult, and she was vainly trying to mentally solve it just by watching it on a screen.

This meant that she wasn’t petting her companion. Much to GLaDOS’s annoyance.

The core had given her a small nudge at first, and Chell gave the AI a few lazy strokes before letting her hand fall back to her side, not paying much attention to her metal companion.

A few minutes went by, and, out of nowhere, Chell found herself being shoved quite roughly by the core’s head, the sudden impact causing her to stumble back and fall on the ground, landing with a soft thud.

Her head snapped up, looking at the core with an expression that clearly stated, ‘What was that for?!’

GLaDOS said nothing, opting instead to lean over Chell, her head low to the ground expectantly.

Chell’s gaze softened, though only slightly. The core hadn’t been actively trying to harm her, which was good, but GLaDOS was definitely going to have to get better at ASKING for what she wanted.

Slowly, the human pulled herself to her feet, shooting the core a mildly irritated look, and giving GLaDOS’s head a small shove to signify her annoyance with the AI’s behavior.

The central core made a small noise akin to a scoff before turning back to her screens to focus on her work, disappointed that her attempt hadn’t worked, but still learning from her mistakes and deciding to try something new next time.

As it turned out, that ‘something new’ was more or less exactly the same, just with much less force. If Chell wasn’t giving her proper attention, the AI would give her a small headbutt to remind her. Not enough to knock her over this time, but enough to stagger her a small bit, and act as a strong reminder of what GLaDOS was looking for.

Chell, deciding that this was done with no ill intent, eventually gave into the core’s persistence, and would start petting her companion when she was urged.

They still had normal interactions too, GLaDOS never failing to come up with witty and slightly offensive conversation topics, but these moments were part of this relationship too. No matter how strange they may be.


	8. Darkness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chell hates it, but she jumps at shadows.

_anonymous asked: "What if Chell had an oddly conventional fear? Like the dark or heights or loud noises? And Glad is just like "wtf you've been to space and back this shouldn't bother you" but does her best to calm her human's nerves anyway. Hurt/comfort fic possibly?"_   
  


Ordinary fears were not a common thing in Aperture. You could have one, sure, but it turned out to be incredibly difficult to worry about little fears like spiders or clowns when you’re focused on dodging turrets and attempting to avoid falling into acid.

The adrenaline rush that the constant life-or-death scenarios that were so common in Aperture proved to be a great distraction to your everyday fears or anxiety.

Chell had enjoyed that luxury. Not to say that she would RATHER be fighting for her life at every turn, she was thankful for the peace that had settled over her life in Aperture. But that came with a price. One that she hadn’t thought about in a long time.

She was afraid of the dark.

Such a simple, pointless fear. But she had it regardless.

Chell had hated the dark for as long as she could remember. It was suffocating, and incredibly dangerous. Anything could hide in the cover of darkness. Anyone could use that to their advantage. They could kill her, and she’d never see it coming. Sometimes, the shadows even seemed to move on their own, curling back and forth like snakes waiting to strike.

But of course, this fear was pointless. The only thing that could sneak up on her and attack was GLaDOS, who had held their truce for a long time now. Chell trusted the AI. She just didn’t trust the shadows.

Thankfully, that fear was rarely a problem. Aperture was covered in bright white lights, shining off the white walls and floors in a way that made the whole place appear to be glowing at times. Being dimly lit was far, far from an issue. GLaDOS made sure of that. What kind of professional facility would they be if they had people tripping over things in the dark?

Chell greatly appreciated this. She never brought her fear up to the AI, and had no plans to change that fact.

That was, until the power went out.

Power outages were not something Chell ever worried about. It seemed… BELOW Aperture to worried about something as trivial as losing power. They had invented a portal gun, surely they wouldn’t have to worry about a blackout.

As it turned out, they did.

Chell had been sitting on her bed, lazily flipping through the pages of a book she had already read twice. It passed the time, and she hadn’t felt like getting up to do anything else. But not even halfway through her browsing, the lights flickered.

She looked up, confused, when they suddenly cut out completely.

It took all her strength to avoid letting out a squeak of surprise, just barely holding her vow of silence.

Still, her body instantly tensed up, and she felt her heartbeat picking up with each passing moment that she sat there.

Aperture was deep underground, so windows were pointless. Now that the power was out, it was well and truly pitch black. She couldn’t see anything. Not even her own hand mere inches away from her face.

Only minutes had passed, yet she had done nothing but freak herself out further. What if she was attacked? She was unarmed, and she couldn’t see any possible attackers. What if something was waiting, watching her from the shadows?

No, that was ridiculous. Nothing had been in here when the lights were on, nothing was in here now. Chell let these words repeat in her head over and over, hoping vainly that they would do something to calm her nerves. It didn’t help much.

Eventually, she simply burrowed herself down under her sheets, pulling the covers over her head and curling up into a tight ball. She’d be ok. The power would come back on soon, and she’d be ok.

She couldn’t be sure how much time had passed. Minutes, hours, days? Her clock had died with everything else, so she had no idea how long she had been curled up under her sheets, eyes shut tight and her body tense.

There was no way of knowing the passage of time in a never changing environment. However, after a while, something changed.

Someone opened Chell’s door.

She nearly jumped out of her skin at the sound, slow and forced, as the normally automatic door was manually opened by someone. Or, something.

Even from underneath her sheets she could tell that no light was streaming in from the opened door, so clearly it wasn’t just her room that was impacted by the power outage, it was this whole wing of the facility, if not all of Aperture.

The sound of footsteps rang out, slowly getting closer and closer, and shaking Chell out of her train of thought. Someone was in here with her, and she had no real way of defending herself. Maybe they wouldn’t notice her in the dark, maybe they’d leave-

“What on earth are you doing?”

A low, familiar, sarcastic tone echoed out in the darkness, prompting Chell to poke her head out from under the covers. It was still mostly pitch black, though there was a tiny amount of light now.

Two glowing, golden optics, shining in the middle of the room and dimly illuminating the facial feature of their owner.

GLaDOS.

Years ago Chell might’ve seen the appearance of the core as a BAD thing, though now it was openly welcomed.

Even still, she made no move to get up at the sight of the core, and obviously didn’t say anything. Instead, she pulled her blankets closer to her body and frowned.

GLaDOS slowly walked closer to her at this sight, being blessed with nightvision and able to see Chell’s every move, even in the darkness.

“What are you hiding from? There is nothing in this room that could hurt you, besides me of course and I’m positive we already agreed to no murder-”

The central core suddenly paused, looking down at Chell once more, furrowing her brow, before raising them in surprise.

“…Are you afraid of the dark?”

The AI’s tone was full of disbelief, and she stared at Chell as if she had grown a second head.

Chell sunk further into her blankets, feeling a mix of fear and embarrassment wash over her. The last thing she needed was to have GLaDOS taunt her about this, it wouldn’t make it any better.

Yet… the sarcastic responses didn’t come. Not right away. GLaDOS was staring at her, studying her for a good, long moment before seemingly making up her mind.

There was the noise of the core shifting her position, and then Chell’s bed dipped a little, under the weight of another person- or, android. GLaDOS had carefully sat down right next to Chell, and was continuing to study her with a fascinated expression.

“…You’ve been to space.”

Chell nodded, confused, yet trying to focus on GLaDOS talking rather than the creeping shadows behind them.

“You’ve been shot at. You’ve nearly been burned alive, nearly blown up, and managed to kill me. And you’re afraid of the dark?”

Chell simply nodded again, knowing full well how silly it sounded when it was put like that.

“…Humans. You always find a way to confuse me.”

The core sighed, her tone surprisingly genuine.

“The power should be back on in an hour or so, it was just a minor malfunction with the generators. Until then…”

GLaDOS trailed off, as if she was debating if she honestly wanted to say the words on the tip of her tongue.

“…Would you like me to stay here? There isn’t much else I can do, and this body can run for weeks without power so I’m not in any rush.”

Chell blinked a few times, as if somehow that would help her see the android any better. GLaDOS was offering to stay with her? That wasn’t common. The core had let Chell hang out in her chamber before, but rarely did she ever come to Chell’s quarters and offer to stay of her own accord.

However, just because it was uncommon didn’t mean that Chell wasted any time in nodding furiously. Yes, she definitely wanted the core to stay. Not only was having someone else she knew with her making things a little easier, but the gentle glow from the android’s optics, while not very bright, did act as a light source, which was better than nothing.

“Alright alright, don’t act too excited.”

GLaDOS scoffed a little, shifting around so that she was partially lying down, with her upper body propped against the headboard of Chell’s bed. Possibly because it was a more comfortable position for the core, but Chell decided that it was because this made GLaDOS a much easier target for cuddling.

In a single movement, the human practically threw herself onto the android’s lap, wrapping her arms around the core’s waist and resting her head against her stomach, nuzzling up to the gentle warmth that emitted from the faux human body. That, coupled with the ever present soft hum from GLaDOS’s processors did wonders for calming Chell down. If she kept her eyes shut, she could almost forget about the darkness that surrounded the two of them like fog.

“H-Hey-!”

The core let out a small noise of surprise at Chell’s sudden cuddle-attack, but quickly relaxed once she noticed how quickly her human had attached herself and gotten comfortable. She let out a sigh, her shoulders sagging in defeat. One could call a creature such as herself heartless, but even she found it a little hard to move Chell in this situation. So… she didn’t. Instead, she placed one of her hands on Chell’s back, and the other on her head, carefully holding the former test subject.

She was no expert on calming humans, she had spent her whole existence trying to do the opposite. However, a quick search through her database told her some basic info. Some humans liked to be held, and based on the girl’s reaction to all this, GLaDOS would assume this applied to Chell as well.

GLaDOS was right. Chell leaned into the touch as much as possible, letting out a small, breathy sound of contentment.

 

“…I still can’t believe you’re genuinely afraid of the dark.”

The android eventually spoke up again, at this point having moved on to rubbing Chell’s back and carefully playing with her hair.

She expected Chell to roll her eyes at this statement, shrug, or even glare at her. Instead, there was no reaction at all.

For a moment, GLaDOS was confused, worried that something was wrong with the girl.

Instead, a quick scan showed that while Chell was fine, she had fallen asleep in GLaDOS’s lap. And knowing what a heavy sleeper she was, the core might be stuck here for a while.


	9. Canine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> GLaDOS definitely isn't lonely. She never got lonely. Not even a little bit.

_anonymous asked: "Ok but what if glados was like a puppy rather than a cat? Like whenever Chell was away exploring in old aperture or something glados would be super sad and lonely but when chell returned she was instantly happy be affectionate"_   
  


GLaDOS didn’t miss that lunatic. She didn’t miss anyone. She was perfectly happy on her own, and she didn’t need anybody else in her life. In fact, no one else was good enough to be in her life. They didn’t deserve her company.

The AI held her head up high at this thought, letting out a haughty sounding huff.

Yes, she was fine without Chell around.

…Completely fine.

Slowly, the core lowered her head and body to the ground, her chassis hanging limp and almost brushing the ground in the process. Her optic shrunk slightly, and she found herself staring at the floor and avoiding watching any of the many cameras showing Orange and Blue’s testing.

It hadn’t been THAT long, had it?

GLaDOS checked her internal clock, something she had been trying to avoid doing.

Chell had been gone for 3 hours, 23 minutes, and 19 seconds.

That was exactly 1 hour, 15 minutes, and 4 seconds longer than she normally took to return from her little exploration in the older parts of Aperture. She was taking too long.

Perhaps it was human nature to be curious, but Chell had been enamored with the old facility. Crumbling, rotting bits of a past that GLaDOS would much rather forget. Besides, she couldn’t even go down there herself. It was an area beyond her control and cameras, and being attached to the ceiling made traveling a little difficult.

Chell however could come and go as she pleased. And she did. She would just walk right out and _abandon_ GLaDOS to go shove her nose in old, dusty offices and play around in ancient test chambers.

Maybe GLaDOS should just lock her down there. Block any entrance to the current facility. Then Chell could be with her precious Old Aperture all she wanted, and GLaDOS would be all by herself once more.

That would be perfect, if… she _didn’t_ want Chell back.

She hated the thought, but the longer the girl was gone, the harder it became for her to ignore.

She wanted her human back. She wanted Chell to come back and pat her on the head for awhile, or maybe rest on top of her chassis. The core never admitted to liking these things, but she did enjoy them ever so much. She had gotten used to closeness and it wasn’t fair for Chell to just take that away. It just… wasn’t fair.

Slowly, the core’s anger towards the girl melted back, revealing loneliness in its stead. A low, sad sounding hum escaped her, and she wondered if she ought to just go into sleep mode while she waited. However, before she could act on this thought, the sound of an elevator caught her attention. Chell had climbed back up to modern Aperture, and was taking the elevator up to GLaDOS’s chamber. Instantly, the core perked up. She briefly thought of all the sarcastic and rude things she could say in response to the girl’s lateness, but those thoughts were quickly brushed aside the moment the ex-test subject entered the room.

The giant robot pulled herself up off the ground, leaning forward. Her golden optic had widened with excitement, and the humming that she let out was upbeat and almost buzzing.

Chell grinned widely, jogging over to GLaDOS to properly greet her, as she knew the core couldn’t move very far while still attached to the ceiling.

The human was covered in dirt and what looked like oil, but she seemed uninjured, which compared to last time, was quite the improvement.

Chell had just barely gotten within reach of the core when she was practically knocked over, as GLaDOS gave her a strong headbutt which quickly shifted into an aggressive nuzzle. If the AI had feet, she’d be tripping over herself.

Chell let out a silent chuckle, recovering from the attack of affection and running her hands over her metallic companion’s head. She knew how the core was when she was on her own in here, she got lonely. And now that she’d learned how to open up about those feelings a little, she tended to be quite… open about what she wanted. She wasted no time with lecturing Chell on taking too long, she seemed far too preoccupied with trying to rub her whole body against Chell’s in an action that might’ve been a hug if she had arms. Or a humanoid form.

Regardless, Chell acknowledged the attempt, and wrapped her arms around the core as best she could, resting her cheek against the warm metal of her lover’s faceplate.

_‘I love you’_

She mouthed the words, knowing that GLaDOS could tell. Either from the cameras littered around the room, or just a strong guess, the core knew what she was saying without having to hear a word.

“Mm…I love you too. Just don’t take so long next time, or I will lock you down there.”

Chell smirked. She’d like to see GLaDOS try.


	10. Baby Steps

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rome wasn't built in a day, and the skill of walking doesn't come instantly.

_anonymous asked: "Here's concept I've yet to see other fic writers consider: Chell teaching android GLaDOS to walk. Of course she would hate the dependence and lack of ability on the subject all to the Chell's amusement :) (can you do it? Thnx)"_  
  


GLaDOS was of the opinion that very few able bodied creatures ever thought about just how easy it was to move.

It was only if you lost that ability to move your body so easily that the thought may cross your mind. Or, if you were moved to a NEW body.

Of course, there was always the possibility of being forcefully placed into an immobile body, such as a potato or other root vegetable. But even if the new body you possessed COULD move, getting used to it turned out to be… difficult.

It had been a couple years since Chell’s return to Aperture, living with GLaDOS as a friend, and later, a partner. And as time had passed, GLaDOS found herself… curious.

She’d be lying if she said she had never thought about what it would be like to move around Aperture freely, no longer hindered by her stationary chassis. But she had always brushed that thought aside, deciding it was easier and safer to simply stay in the body she was familiar with.

Now though, she couldn’t suppress her desire to TRY. She would never want to be human, she’d never sink that low, but she was curious to experience being in a humanoid figure.

So, she crafted one. Days of studying the human body and how it moved, weeks of replicating muscles and skin, and a whole month of finishing the last details. Chell complained that GLaDOS needn’t be so picky if she simply wanted to walk around on two feet, but Aperture never did anything half-assed.

By the time she was finished, she had created the perfect body. Well, for something made to look like a human anyway.

Faux skin and hair, long limbs, and a well defined face. As Chell sarcastically commented, _‘A fitting body for a narcissistic robot.’_

GLaDOS decided to take that as a compliment.

The body was made to be easily transferred into, and just as easily transferred back out of. She was NOT getting stuck in a body like this for good. This was just a… test.

And so far, on looks alone, she was quite proud. It could do almost everything a human could do, except with a few additions. Being able to crush metal with her bare hands and survive being shot at were completely necessary. One couldn’t be too careful around an ex-murderer and resident mute lunatic after all.

Yet when it came time for her to transfer herself into it, she hesitated. It had been years since she had been forcibly removed from this body, and even though this time was willing, it was hard not to picture the incident from so long ago.

She shook the head of her chassis, trying to clear her mind. This was her choice, this was her body. She wasn’t being forced out of her body and shoved into a potato, she was putting herself in a body that ought to be more than capable of self-defense, if needed. She’d be fine.

With that thought strong in her mind, she started the transfer. Chell stood by in the corner of the room, watching closely in case something went wrong. Though she hardly seemed worried. In fact, despite looking excited, she looked positively relaxed. GLaDOS would’ve questioned her about this, but talking and switching bodies at the same time was not an easy task, so she kept quiet.

It wasn’t as painful as she thought it would be. It was uncomfortable, but not as horrifically painful as her last transfer had been. It had once felt like she was being ripped out of her body, tearing and pulling her apart. Now, it felt more like an insistent tugging, urging her out of her familiar chassis and into a new body. She struggled against the feeling at first, but once she relaxed it went a lot smoother. Everything went black, and she suddenly lost all ability to move.

A few moments passed, and she opened her optics. Instead of one, she now had two, staring directly up at the ceiling of her chamber as the android she has inhabiting lay against a metal table.

She blinked, the feeling unnatural. Her body had the ability to move, yet her limbs felt like stones. She tried moving her head, and thankfully found that was fairly similar to what it was like in her chassis.

Chell had walked over while the core looked around the room, a smirk making its way onto her face as she watched the android’s head twist and turn around while the rest of her body seemed as still as a statue, making for quite the odd sight.

GLaDOS caught onto that smirk quickly.

“Stop that. You look stupid.”

The AI snapped this out, though finding her newfound lips moving as she did so. How strange. It happened on reflex alone, as she no longer had the ability to talk using only speakers. She had crafted this body to speak like a human would, and thus, moving her lips was part of that.

Still, she wasn’t going to lie around here contemplating speech, she wanted to move. The only problem was… how.

Her brain registered that she COULD move her limbs, but… how? She didn’t feel like she had control of them. The only way to know was to try, so she forced her arm to move. It lurched upward before flopping back onto the table.

That earned a snort from Chell. One that GLaDOS decided to ignore.

She tried again, focusing her energy to hold her arm upwards. It shook slightly, but she managed to keep it in place. The feeling was new, but… she could understand it. If she could move her arm, surely walking wouldn’t be difficult? It was only moving your legs, that didn’t seem all that hard.

So, in a rather jerky and abrupt movement, she launched her upper body into a sitting position, sitting upright and as stiff as a board.

Alright, just get off the table, and move.

She took a deep breath, despite not needing air. Then, she jumped off the table in a wonderfully graceful and smooth action that ended with her landing on her feet with ease.

…Or, maybe that wasn’t what happened.

Maybe she half tossed herself off, half fell off the table and onto a crumpled heap on the floor with a very loud, metallic ‘THUD.’

That was probably a lot closer to how it went down. Accompanied by a mixture of concern and amusement from her partner, who was shooting the android a sympathetic look, despite silently snickering. Chell knew that only GLaDOS’s pride was hurt, so she carefully crouched down next to the AI.

“…You. Saw. Nothing.”

The central core snarled this out, moving herself back into a sitting position, using her arms to push herself up. Her golden optics were little more than angry slits, as if trying to burn a hole in Chell’s head by simply staring. The girl was, of course, unaffected. She knew the AI wouldn’t hurt her, and therefor was just as threatening as a kitten.

GLaDOS was partly regretting this fact, as she desperately wished to be seen as at least partly intimidating to make up for the embarrassment that seemed to burn her to the core. She was supposed to be powerful, so why was walking so difficult? It was such a simple action that most young human children could do it! Surely she ought to be able to do it way easier and better than them, she was far more intelligent.

‘These sorts of things need practice you know.’  
Chell had tapped her on the shoulder and signed something, though her comment did little to calm GLaDOS.

“I know that! I just… need to gather myself and try again, that was a glitch in my programming.”

She scoffed in the human’s direction, refusing to let herself be patronized by her former test subject.

Besides, she had practiced. She just tried, that ought to be enough. She placed her arms on the ground beneath her, and pushed herself up into a standing position.

She wobbled back and forth, grabbing onto the table for support. Her legs were bent and shaking quite violently, but she was still standing. If you had asked Chell, she would’ve commented that the core looked quite similar to a baby deer trying to stand for the first time. But considering GLaDOS’s ego was something easily damaged, the ex-test subject kept that thought to herself, deciding to let the core figure things out on her own, unless she asked for help or clearly needed it.

“You see? I’m fine! I don’t need any help-”

GLaDOS spoke with a shaky pride, her voice wavering as she tried to take a step forward, and fell. She expected to hit the ground once more, but found herself in the warm arms of a human. Chell had quick reflexes after being a test subject for so long, and had darted forward to catch the core before she fell.

This earned a small squeak to escape the core, despite herself, attempting to jump out of the girl’s arms and almost falling back over if not for Chell’s strong grip. It wasn’t like they hadn’t shared physical contact over the years, but a hug or caress on the side of GLaDOS’s giant chassis was a lot different than something like this. GLaDOS was her size now- if a bit taller- and the simplest acts of affection suddenly felt a lot more intimate.

A few moments passed, in nothing but silence. GLaDOS had stopped struggling, trying to calm and steady herself before she attempted to move away from Chell. Once she was positive she was at least somewhat sturdy, she cleared her throat.

“…I know you’ve been excited about this new body, but you can let go of me now.”

That earned a blush on her human’s face, who hastily let go, though stayed in place in the event that GLaDOS would need her support once more.

GLaDOS didn’t need her help, she could figure this out on her own. But as she tried to take a step forward, she just barely grabbed the table in time to stop herself from falling. All her movements felt jerky and uncontrolled, and every attempt she made seemed to fail.

This seemed to be more than enough proof for Chell, who once more signed something to the core, the look on her face already telling GLaDOS that whatever she was suggesting was likely to be the opposite of what the AI wanted.

_‘…Do you want me to help you learn?’_

  
“ABSOLUTELY NOT!”  
  


GLaDOS responded almost instantly, her cooling fans turning on and letting out a soft buzz, not-so-subtly hinting to her embarrassment. She had not given this body the ability to blush, but the buzzing was the second closest thing she could do.

Chell smiled somewhat at the android’s reaction, but her brows furrowed at the response. She knew the core, and she knew how she worked. Her pride was a big part of who she was, and it was often hard for the core to get past that pride and accept help. Even when she clearly needed it. So, Chell offered again, holding her hand out to the core.

_‘It won’t be bad, I’ll just make sure you won’t fall, and you can try walking around. I promise I won’t laugh at you, and I won’t tell anyone about this.’_

That softened the AI somewhat, her expression relaxing somewhat and her shoulders losing the tension that they had been holding onto.

“I…Fine.”

GLaDOS gave in surprisingly quickly, though the scowl on her face made it clear she wasn’t happy.

And thus started one of the most frustrating days of her life.

She’d take a step, stumble, Chell would hold onto her. She’d take a few steps, stumble, Chell would make sure she didn’t fall. After about an hour, Chell said she could try taking a few steps without being held onto. She took about two before she fell again.

  
And as the day passed, the core only got more and more frustrated. She was failing over and over, embarrassing herself, and being helped by a human!

She found herself so worked up by these thoughts that she hardly noticed when she had made it about ten steps forward without falling. And a couple more. Then she stopped, and stood in place. She didn’t fall. Her optics widened somewhat at the realization.

“I did it…?”

Chell’s face lit up, and she practically ran over to the core, pulling her into a strong hug, nodding furiously. She hadn’t been put off by the AI’s bad attitude, and had been helping and waiting patiently this whole time.

GLaDOS was, at first, too stunned to do anything. She had spent all day either being caught, or ending up face first on the floor. The fact that she had been able to move forward, and then stop and stand in place rather than falling again was surprising. But incredibly uplifting.

She looked at Chell, unaware of just how expressive her new face was. She was smiling. Something that she hadn’t done for her entire time that she’d been in this body.

Part of her knew that taking a handful of successful steps didn’t mean she’d be waltzing around Aperture tonight, it would definitely take more time and practice- and likely more embarrassment- but she had made progress. And that was enough to make her happy, for now.


	11. Irritation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Normally it's GLaDOS who suffers the most from bad moods and a short temper. However, everyone has off days, even Chell.

_anonymous asked: "What if whenever Chell gets pissy or irritable GLaDOS just pins her down to the ground with her massive head and doesn't let her up until she calms down?"_   
  
  


Chell didn’t get angry. She prided herself on being cool and collected, even in stressful moments. She didn’t blow up at people if they wronged her, or resort to name-calling at the tip of a hat. She didn’t get mad.

No, but she could certainly get grumpy. Or at least, so GLaDOS had told her.

Nothing had happened in particular to put her in this mood, but perhaps she had slept badly, or just woken up on the wrong side of the bed. She put little effort into her appearance, throwing her hair into a messy ponytail, and throwing on the same jumpsuit she had worn the day before. She couldn’t bring herself to care.

She took her time going to GLaDOS’s chamber, aside from how it usually was, where she’d make her way there first thing in the morning to spend time with the AI and find something to do for the day.

Instead, she dragged her feet, occasionally kicking the floor as she walked, releasing some frustration, but doing herself little good.

When she finally made it to the core’s chamber, the giant AI greeted her eagerly, though equally sarcastically.

“Well well, here I thought you finally dropped dead on your way here. Looks like you’re still alive.”

Chell didn’t respond, a small grunt escaping her instead. Even after spending so much time with the central core in a friendly manner, speaking was a rarity at best for her. And right now, the most the core was going to get was a dismissive grunt.

She plopped herself down on her chair in the corner of the room-something GLaDOS had added after Chell complained about sitting on the floor constantly- picking up the pen and a piece of paper that she had left there the day before. Normally she used it for doodling or writing messages to GLaDOS, but she couldn’t bring herself to actually do anything with it. Instead, she scribbled on the paper, practically digging the tip of the pen into the table with her attempts.

“Ah yes, the artistic masterpiece of a black splotch of ink. Truly, you are leading the art world into a whole new direction.”

GLaDOS’s sarcastic drawl echoed out around the chamber, and for some reason, it seemed to grate on Chell’s ears. She normally didn’t mind the sound of the core’s voice, even when it took a more snarky tone. In fact, she would dare to say that she enjoyed it, as it was often smooth and silky, and pleasant to the ear. But something about today made every noise, every interruption feel like someone was dragging nails down a chalkboard.

In response, she whipped around, glaring at the core, who had leaned over to be practically hanging over Chell’s shoulder.

The rather sudden movement was enough to earn a slight widening of the AI’s optic, but that was the most reaction that Chell was going to get. So she grabbed her paper, crumpled it up, and threw it at GLaDOS. She wasn’t quite sure why she did it, the core hadn’t really done anything _wrong_ , other than being generally sarcastic, but annoyance had bubbled up in Chell’s chest, and she had hoped the small action would make her feel better.

The paper ball bounced off the core’s head, who pulled back, shaking her whole chassis for a moment like a cat who had just had water flicked on its nose.

“Must you resort to violence for all your amusement? It’s quite childish to throw things, you know.”

GLaDOS narrowed her optic, keeping a bit of distance from Chell as she spoke this time. She seemed annoyed at the girl’s actions, though not quite angry yet. She seemed more confused as to the human’s change of attitude.

Chell, only further offset by the core’s comment, abruptly stood up, practically stomping over to the robot and clenching her fist. She didn’t know what she wanted from GLaDOS, but this wasn’t it. She was annoyed, and she needed some kind of reaction that would get rid of this irritation. Well, she got what she wanted. Sort of.

GLaDOS held her gaze for a few moments, before suddenly thrusting her head forward, staggering Chell and knocking her to the floor. But that wasn’t all. As soon as the human fell to the ground, GLaDOS pressed her head down on the ex-test subject, holding her to the ground. It wasn’t a strong or painful position to be in, but it was not what Chell had been expecting.

Instantly, she struggled, squirming under the core and attempting to punch the side of her head.

“What? If you’re going to act like a brat, I’m not going to let you stomp around my facility like a bear with fleas. You’re either going to relax, or we’re going to be here for a very long time.”

The AI’s words did little to quell the frustration that Chell was harboring, as the human tried to escape GLaDOS’s hold once more, trying to push the giant metal head away. She was strong, but not strong enough to push a giant robot off of her. However she had managed to free one of her arms, and started punching the core’s head. From the way GLaDOS’s optic twitched, she knew the core felt it, though it was likely nothing more than an annoyance. Still, the girl continued.

After a while, her hand started to hurt, and her swings became slower and slower, until eventually, she simply let her hand fall to her side. She met the core’s gaze once more, who was still watching her intently. How long had they been like this? A couple minutes? An hour? She wasn’t quite sure, but Chell was surprised to find as the moments passed, tension seemed to slip off her shoulders.

Maybe it was the gentle warm of GLaDOS’s faceplate against her, or the soft, therapeutic hum that accompanied the AI at all times.

Chell took a deep breath, closing her eyes for a moment before letting the breath out, exhaling as slow as possible, hoping she could chase off any lingering irritation with the action.

“…See? Isn’t that better?”

GLaDOS finally spoke up, carefully removing herself from Chell and allowing the girl to stand up if she pleased. The robot seemed content with Chell’s attitude now, though she still watched the girl, waiting to see if she was right.

Chell still wasn’t having the best day, but she certainly felt a lot better, and slowly pulled herself up to her feet.

She paused, tilting her head a little before nodding. GLaDOS had been right, and her actions had been effective at calming the girl.

So, for the first time all day, Chell cracked a small smile. For an occasionally homicidal robot, her tactics for calming someone down were shockingly good. Well, for people she liked anyway.

Chell assumed that if she needed to calm someone that she wasn’t so fond of, neurotoxin would be involved.


	12. Observation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> GLaDOS is a scientist, it's only natural for her to want to study things.

_anonymous asked: "Android!GLaDOS headcannon~she has a fascination with looking at Chell up close. After her former body lacked the ability to actually touch and feel her, GLaD finds its deeply intriguing to look at Chell from angles she never could before. (Example sometimes she'll just hold Chell's hand in her own silently studying it for a while, play with her hair, or feel her heartbeat)"_   
  
  


Chell wasn’t sure how she expected GLaDOS to act once she was put inside a humanoid body. Perhaps she had subconsciously assumed that the core would be cold and distant, with any shows of affection being few, far between, and incredibly subtle. After all, in her chassis it was so easy to act indifferent by simply turning her gaze away and pretending not to be interested. It was difficult to read the body language of a giant AI, which could work to the core’s advantage, if she wished to remain stoic.

And even in recent times, where the two of them had grown close, physical affection proved to be a bit difficult. They found their way around it and developed ways to share close contact, but it wasn’t as frequent as most human couples, due to its somewhat difficult nature.

But as it turned out, GLaDOS was full of surprises.

After taking some time to adapt to her new form, the AI had shocked Chell.

She was… affectionate. Incredibly so. Well, in her own way.

Once GLaDOS had realized the sheer level of things she could do now that she was in this body, her curiosity became overwhelming. At first she was walking around Aperture, running her hands across the walls or staring into test chambers, no longer watching through a camera overhead, but instead seeing through the eye level of a test subject.

The android was fascinated by this, but there was one thing she seemed to have taken the most interest in. And that of course, was Chell herself.

In her own words, “I’ve never had the chance to look at you humans this closely before. It will be good to take note of all the things that went wrong in the construction of your face.”

Chell had simply scoffed at this, ignoring the not-so-subtle insult. However, true to her word, GLaDOS had taken to… examining her.

She had once walked up to Chell so briskly, and grabbed her face with such purpose that Chell had thought the core was about to kiss her. Instead, GLaDOS had held her chin in place, gazing into her eyes as if studying them, tilting her head back and forth like she was examining an artifact. Chell had turned beet red, her skin growing hot with embarrassment at being studied so closely. GLaDOS’s gaze was somehow even more intense in this form, her golden optics burning with a fierce curiosity and desire to learn.

And it didn’t stop with the visual examination. With this new body, GLaDOS was able to FEEL. Touch sensors all across her faux skin, allowing her to pick up on everything she felt.

And Chell couldn’t deny, she enjoyed this part a lot more.

GLaDOS had started with little things, taking hold of her hand, gently running her fingers across the rough and calloused skin of the human’s hands, as opposed to the unnaturally smooth skin of GLaDOS.

Chell shuddered at the feeling, letting out a breath she didn’t know she had been holding. How long had it been since she had her hand held by another human? Or, at least, something close to human. She had forgotten just how comforting it could be, to indulge in the simplest of actions. And it seemed that GLaDOS felt similarly, fascinated by this new interaction, and excited to learn more.

Even now, Chell sat in the core’s chamber, resting in GLaDOS’s lap with her eyes closed, letting out small purrs of approval as the android’s fingers ran through her hair, gently pulling it out of its ponytail and detangling it. They sat mostly in silence, though GLaDOS would occasionally hum a tune as she worked, her voice soft and melodic in Chell’s ear. She almost would’ve fallen asleep, if not for the sudden change in the AI’s actions. Her hand stopped playing with the human’s hair, instead moving down her arm, stopping at her wrist, holding it gently. At first, Chell was confused.

Then, the core moved again, her hand carefully moving back up to Chell’s shoulder, her collarbone, and then… right over her heart.

GLaDOS had been feeling her pulse. Her heartbeat.

“… You’re alive.”

Chell felt her heart skip a beat at this realization- hoping the core hadn’t noticed- a spark of warmth spreading through her as she listened to GLaDOS’s words, and felt the AI’s hand stay carefully in place over heart.

She was pressed against GLaDOS’s chest, and could feel that the android didn’t possess the same beating heart that a human had. However…

Chell moved her hands, grabbing the core’s hand and squeezing it, before laying it flat, and signing something on top of it, making sure GLaDOS could feel her actions as she did.

_‘So are you.’_

It wasn’t GLaDOS’s new body that made her alive, though Chell believed it had helped them both realize it. She might not possess a heart that pumped blood, but she had a heart regardless. A curious, loving, and sometimes, confusing heart.


	13. Warmth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aperture is a cold, lifeless facility, so Chell finds her own ways to keep warm.

_anonymous asked: "Chell using Glados as a heating pad on cold nights?"_   
  
  


“You know this was NOT what I had in mind when I created this body.”

GLaDOS’s voice echoed out in a small, dark room, sounding as sharp as always, though ever so slightly quieter than she would normally speak inside her own chamber.

“Here I thought I’d be taking a huge step in the world of science, creating a humanlike body with none of their faults, able to host such a genius, advanced creature as myself.”

Her golden optics were the only light source in the room, glowing gently with a yellow hue. It helped to showcase parts of her face, and gave small amounts of lighting to her close surroundings.

“And yet… You’ve decided that you want to use my body, as a space heater.”

The core was currently laying in her back on a small bed, with a certain mute lunatic practically sprawled out on top of her, clinging to the android like a lifeline. A stupid grin lingered on the human’s face, snuggling as close as possible to her robotic companion.

“You could’ve simply _asked_ me to raise the general heating in this section if you were really so cold, but no. You have me come down here, acting like there’s some kind of emergency, only to use me as a source of warmth while you try to sleep.”

Chell nodded, never once losing the contented smile on her face. GLaDOS’s body was constantly warm, likely due to the processors that kept her running. She had plenty of cooling agents, but even with them, her body temperature was slightly warmer than that of a human’s.

And that meant, in the underground, chilled facility of Aperture, GLaDOS made the perfect cuddle companion.

“I don’t know why I’m talking, you clearly aren’t paying attention. I should just leave. How would you like that, hm?”

The android scoffed, though, unsurprisingly, made no move to get up.

Chell knew the core’s threat of leaving was completely baseless. How?

GLaDOS, despite her complaints, had very willingly laid down on the bed, and over time, had wrapped one of her arms around Chell, absentmindedly rubbing her back. Chell might’ve been the more obvious of the two, but she knew GLaDOS could be just as cuddly as she was.

That fact was only backed up by the fact that even when Chell awoke the next morning, she found that the core had not moved in the slightest, having gone into sleep mode, holding her human close.

GLaDOS was a good heater, despite what she may say.


	14. Nest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chell just wants to go to sleep. GLaDOS is doing what she thinks will help.

_anonymous asked: "Do you think instead of giving her a bed GLaDOS would have Chell sleep in a makeshift nest made of blankets and pillows? Sense it works so well with her bird children"_  
  
  


When Chell had returned to Aperture, she made a deal with GLaDOS. She would test four five days a week, and in return, she’d be granted a place to sleep, safety, food, water, anything she could need. She could stop testing at any time, but she’d have to leave Aperture. It was like a job of sorts now, but instead of a paycheck, she had almost all of Aperture and its resources at her disposal.

After a debate on whether or not lethal tests were part of the agreement-Chell won that argument- things were set.

She was able to take a shower, get something to eat and drink, then spent the rest of the day wandering the vast, neverending halls of Aperture. She couldn’t tell exactly what time it was when she deemed it late enough to go to bed, but she assumed it was some time at night.

However she realized something. GLaDOS had never given her a room to go to. So, looking for confirmation, she headed to the AI’s chamber, signing her question to the core.

_‘Where will I be sleeping?’_

She was incredibly eager to rest her head, as she had spent her time on the surface constantly on the move, and the idea of a soft bed was incredibly enticing.

“Well I don’t exactly have a room for you at the moment, your arrival was…admittedly unexpected. But I plan to hold good on my promise, so you will sleep in here for now.”

Chell raised an eyebrow. She supposed she didn’t mind, but where was she supposed to-

If you had asked her what she expected out of this, an actual bed would be… fairly high up on the list. She had assumed that out of all the things that GLaDOS had created, a bed would not be out of the question.

Instead, as she looked over to the corner of the room, she was not met with the sight of a bed. Rather, what she saw looked a lot more like a pile of cloth.

She walked towards it, both stunned and curious. Upon closer inspection, it appeared to be several blankets and pillows, bunched up in such a way that it formed a large, circular, nest-like creation.

Slowly, Chell turned her head back to GLaDOS, desperately trying to convey _‘Are you serious?’_ with a single look.

The android didn’t seem to catch on.

_‘What… is this?’_

Chell signed at a much slower pace than usual, trying to put emphasis on her words without the use of her voice.

“It’s where you’ll be sleeping. I’ll have you know I worked quite hard to replicate this in a size that would suit someone of your…shape. But since you are doing me the favor of testing while you’re here, I thought I’d be extra nice, and go to the effort. My little killing machines love this sort of thing, and since you’re so good at murder, I thought you would as well.”

If she was being honest, Chell couldn’t decide which was more ridiculous. The fact that GLaDOS had pet birds, or the fact that she assumed that Chell was going to sleep like them.

_‘You have…pet **birds**?’_

“They aren’t _pets_ , they’re killing machines.”

GLaDOS shot back, crossing her arms somewhat defensively. Still, she hadn’t taken back her original statement of saying that Chell was going to sleep here. She really wasn’t kidding. In fact, she almost seemed… hurt?

Despite the strangeness of the core’s offering, it did seem to be genuine. She had made something for the girl, and Chell had snubbed it.

Feeling a bit bad, she crouched down, carefully climbing into it. She could at least humor the AI.

It was a bit awkward to get comfortable in at first, but after a few moments of sitting in it, she found herself tempted to lay down and curl up amongst the blankets. So she did.

To her surprise, the blankets proved to be incredibly soft, and rather warm. The pillows kept her from lying on the hard floor, and would hopefully make sure she avoided a stiff back in the morning. All in all, it wasn’t as bad as she expected. She still wanted a real bed later, but… this was a fine substitute.

She heard footsteps, and looked up to see GLaDOS walking over to her, then kneeling down and tilting her head.

“See? You love it. I told you so. I know you better than you know yourself. Ha.”

The android gloated for a moment, holding her head up high, pridefully. However, hidden behind her smirk was an actual look of excitement and relief. She had honestly thought that this was what Chell was looking for, and while that wasn’t exactly true, Chell didn’t mind letting her believe otherwise for a little while.

After all, these blankets really were quite cozy.


	15. Embrace

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hugs, while difficult to execute, are highly enjoyed by both Chell and GLaDOS.

_anonymous asked: "(this was an idea mentioned on @i-love-glados 's blog) whenever Chell goes to hug Glados, she lifts up just to mess with her and make her hug tighter and Chell is like "not again"_  
  


GLaDOS was NOT huggable. She was the queen of Aperture, she was the ice cold ruler of an underground, morally corrupt science facility. She was the opposite of cuddly.

But… if someone was going to hug her, they might as well actually commit.

Chell had taken to hugging the central core as her main form of physical affection, as it was relatively easy, despite the AI’s bulky chassis. However more frequently than not, she’d simply come in for a quick gentle squeeze, and then she’d pull away. That was fine every once and awhile, but if you asked GLaDOS, it was just getting lazy.

So, she had found herself a new way of having some fun with this.

Chell came up, wrapping her arms around GLaDOS’s faceplate, and was about to pull away, when GLaDOS moved her head. She raised it while the girl was still holding on, causing her to let out a small squeak of surprise, and to suddenly tighten her grip on the core.

GLaDOS, if she had a mouth, would’ve been grinning like the Cheshire cat. That worked better than expected.

Chell looked down at her, partly stunned, partly questioning. Her gaze alone making her question quite clear.

_‘Are you gonna let me down?’_

The answer was no. Not right away anyway.

Instead, GLaDOS shifted her head a little, nuzzling Chell in the process.

And, to her credit, Chell seemed to relax somewhat after a few minutes. She was about fifteen feet off the ground, but she had a firm grip on GLaDOS, and had faith that the core wouldn’t let her fall.

A few more moments passed, before GLaDOS slowly lowered Chell back down to the ground. She was satisfied with the amount of affection she had received.

“Don’t look at me like that, you started this.”

Chell raised an eyebrow in response, as if debating if she wanted to argue that no, technically she didn’t, it was GLaDOS’s idea to hold Chell in the air for a few minutes so she would hug her a little bit tighter.

_‘I think you’re just needy.’_

Chell signed this with a smirk, her eyes sparkling with amusement. GLaDOS would protest all day that she had NO interest in cuddling of any sort, and she definitely DIDN’T enjoy hugs, but her actions spoke otherwise.

“Wha- N-No I’m not! I am anything but! I was just trying to get you to… to fall off! Yes, that was it. I wanted you to fall and break your legs. Hpmh.”

The core turned her head away from Chell, as if trying to further make her point. But the soft humming that came from her now slightly overheated processors gave Chell more than enough information.

She got the feeling that this wasn’t going to be a one-time thing.


	16. Kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> GLaDOS is skilled in many arts, it's only natural that she'd want to show that off.

_anonymous asked: "Don't know if you've already done this: android! Glados teaching Chell to kiss"_   
  
  


This was an unfair fight from the beginning.

From the moment Chell walked into the chamber, her expression sheepish, to the moment where GLaDOS had her tongue in the girl’s mouth, her actions wolfish.

But perhaps that was getting a bit ahead of things, GLaDOS wasn’t one for _random_ acts of passion. The feeling was always present, but one need only prompt her to set it off.

Chell managed to do just that.

GLaDOS’s android body had made affection easier, though it had never passed the boundaries of bear hugs and late night cuddling. GLaDOS knew of other forms of affection- she had a vast knowledge of any and all human behavior instantly on hand at all times after all- but never pressed the matter. She had no idea if the human was simply uninterested, or not ready. Besides, the AI was far from being in a rush. Living forever tends to give one a bit more patience than your average mortal.

And so, the thought was labeled as unimportant and pushed to the back of the core’s mind, and she focused on more pressing things, like science.

That was exactly what she had been doing when Chell silently shuffled into her chamber. The core hardly even needed to look up, her attention still mostly grabbed by her current project. This wasn’t abnormal, Chell visited her from time to time. Often they would set aside time to do things together, and if Chell knew that GLaDOS was busy, would settle for climbing in the core’s lap while she worked and cuddle in silence.

Yet this time, that didn’t happen. She slowly walked up to the core, stopping about five feet away from the AI’s throne-like chair, and just sort of… watched. Like she had something she wanted to express, but either was unsure how, or could not muster the courage to do so.

This got GLaDOS to do two things. Firstly, she looked up at the girl, making sure she wasn’t injured or otherwise in distress. The second was to check the time. Time was almost non-existent to the Queen of Aperture, and it had been that way only up until recently. Having a human around meant they wanted real sleep and not adrenal vapors, so that also meant keeping track of time and letting said human adjust to what would be a ‘normal’ sleep pattern.

It was, at the moment, far past the time Chell usually went to bed. At least an hour and a half past, actually. For a moment, GLaDOS wondered if the girl hadn’t been able to sleep, and studied her human’s face for any signs of the nightmares that occasionally plagued her.

Thankfully, she found none. Instead, she only found the slight traces of a blush, and Chell gently biting her bottom lip, as if in thought.

“…Well? If you feel the great urge to simply stare at me on a daily basis I can arrange to set up a photo in your room, as it would be mildly less creepy than doing it in person.”

GLaDOS smirked a little as she spoke, watching Chell’s head shake a small bit as she snapped back reality, the light blush now turning much darker. Yet the human still didn’t respond. Instead, she only shuffled closer, until she was standing directly in front of the core.

This prompted GLaDOS to stand, and the two of them were nearly touching.

“If you’d like something from me, I’d advise being upfront. While I’m working on it, I haven’t quite developed the technology for mind reading.”

She crossed her arms, eyebrow raised slightly as she tried to read Chell as best as she could.

_“…Iwaswonderingifyoucouldhelpmewithsomething”_

Chell’s voice- as rare to hear as it was beautiful- came out as a very quiet, jumbled mumble that took even GLaDOS a moment to understand. The AI blinked, slowly putting the sentence together.

“You want my help? With what? If this is about the giant spiders, I told Orange and Blue to handle them, so they shouldn’t have escaped.”

That earned a slight double take from Chell, who’s eyes widened in horror for a brief moment before GLaDOS’s laughter made the statement clear to be nothing more but a joke.

The core allowed herself a small chuckle, remembering to save the image of Chell’s face on the camera feed to look at on a later date. But for now, her expression had softened somewhat, letting Chell know that she was in fact listening, and ready to be serious if called for.

_“…mmph…”_

Chell shifted in place, letting out a small noise that sounded closer to a grunt of reluctance than anything resembling human language. The former test subject seemed to agonize over this for another few moments, before taking one, deep breath, and meeting GLaDOS’s gaze. Instead of speaking, she signed, her hands shaking a small bit as she did so.

_‘I… I want to kiss you.’_

To say that GLaDOS was slightly taken aback would be an understatement. She stood in place for a good, long moment, processing what she had just been told.

“I give you permission?”

She tilted her head somewhat, her tone questioning. She had told Chell before that she was not squeamish with human affection, and that, at least in her android body, Chell was free to try forms of affection that she saw fit, and GLaDOS would tell her in the moment if she had any issues with it. A kiss was far from the strangest thing Chell could do, so the core was confused with the girl’s embarrassment over the request.

However her reaction was not the one that Chell was hoping for, as the girl gave her an exasperated expression and a deeper blush, clearly not happy that she was going to have to elaborate on a point that she felt was embarrassing enough to talk about in the first place.

_‘I can’t…I don’t…know how.’_

The last words were signed very slowly, and Chell had long since broken eye contact, and seemed to have taken to examining the floor with great interest.

However she was missing out on a rather interesting reaction on GLaDOS’s end, who’s eyebrows nearly raised off her forehead, and her optics widened for a moment, before a very slow, and deeply satisfied smirk crossed her face.

Perhaps it was just a narcissistic robot being a narcissistic robot, but there was something deeply satisfying to the core about realizing that, at least in this field, she was more experienced in being a human than the actual human. How very ironic.

“And so you’ve come to me to teach you? Honestly Chell, if I wasn’t the super computer I am, I would’ve called you a lunatic for making an android your first choice for kissing lessons. Lucky for you, I like to think I’m a jack of many trades, and a master of all.”

Her smugness was not missed by Chell, who huffed, turning her head away in hopes of keeping GLaDOS from seeing her flustered expression. She wasn’t taking a shot in the dark, she knew full well that GLaDOS possessed the ability to master almost any skill she desired, able to access information and adapt herself to learn the ability in mere moments. Humans didn’t have that luxury, unfortunately.

_‘…If you don’t want to, just forget I said anything-’_

Chell started to sign this, about to turn away and hurry out of the chamber, ready to bury her face in her pillow and try to remove the burning blush from her cheeks. GLaDOS wasn’t having that.

She grabbed the girl’s wrist gently, but firm enough to make her intention known.

“I never had any intention of saying no.”

Chell looked up as GLaDOS spoke, meeting the AI’s eyes once more, despite how difficult that seemed. Her silver eyes gave many things away, GLaDOS discovered. Surprise, embarrassment, and…excitement.

Excitement that GLaDOS knew was no doubt mirrored in her own, golden gaze.

If she had a heart, it would no doubt beat a little faster at the growing, heavy feeling in the air between them.

“Just how much explaining do I have to do? Or… would you rather I simply show you?” The core surprised herself with her tone, as she felt some of her natural edge melt away, sounding far too… human for her tastes. For a moment, she wondered if Caroline had ever been in a situation such as this.

That thought was quickly chased from her mind, as that was just about the last thing she wanted to think about right now.

Instead, she distracted herself, moving her hand from Chell’s wrist, to her waist. She hooked it around and pulled her human in closer, using her free hand to guide Chell’s arms into a more natural position, instead of hanging limply at her sides.

“…Calm down. I can feel your heart racing.”

GLaDOS murmured this, taking her tone down a few notches, keeping herself quiet for the sake of keeping the mood from feeling too stiff. At her words, Chell gave a quick, nervous smile, and mouthed the words, _‘I can’t help it.’_

This moment could’ve gone on for seconds, or maybe minutes, it was hard to say. GLaDOS could’ve checked the time, but never did. Chell had her full interest now. Her project, the rest of Aperture, and yes, even the current time, became a passing thought in the back of her mind. Somehow, none of it seemed as important as the lunatic in her arms.

Slowly, acting on instinct that she wasn’t supposed to have, GLaDOS leaned forward, and closed the gap between her and Chell.

She might possess the knowledge and ability to do this, but this was still her first time properly trying it. And it did not disappoint.

Her lips, artificial as they may be, fit perfectly against Chell’s. She pressed, pushed, and molded the girl’s mouth against her own, loosening her up and keeping her from being as still as a statue the whole time.

Chell, to her credit, wasn’t too bad at keeping up. She seemed quite nervous at first, simply letting GLaDOS move against her instead of making any motions of her own. But with the core’s gentle prodding and wordless persuasion, she slowly moved to mimic the AI, trying to copy her movements and kiss back as best she could.

However, humans did tend to need air, so GLaDOS pulled away after a few moments. Chell took in a deep gasp of air the moment she could, yet at the same time, let out a small whine at the loss of contact.

GLaDOS let out a low chuckle at the reaction, the sound soft and rumbling. She brought a hand up to Chell’s face, brushing a stray hair aside, and running a finger over the girl’s lips.

“…According to the data I have access to… You are not… the worst kisser that the human race has known. Though I do believe you rank at least sixth place.”

Chell smiled. It was warm, and gentle, and made GLaDOS’s chest ache. She didn’t have to think this time, as she quickly pulled the girl in for another kiss. Her hand moving from the human’s waist moved to the small of her back, pulling her closer still. She could not get enough of the feeling, and from the, albeit inexperienced, enthusiasm that Chell was giving her, she could tell that the girl felt the same way.

It did not take long for GLaDOS to start testing. That’s what she was made to do after all, testing. She looked for positive reactions. She tilted her head left, then right. She took the former test subject’s bottom lip between her teeth as delicately as possible, tugging it softly. She took the girl’s hair from its ponytail for the sheer purpose of better tangling her hand in it. She explored.

And if nothing else, Chell could walk away from all this knowing that the world’s smartest supercomputer, the most advanced android in existence, had her tongue practically down her throat. So at the very least, there was the bragging rights of the matter.

But based on the noises of approval coming from the once mute girl, GLaDOS assumed that she was enjoying more than just the bragging rights.


	17. Lies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> GLaDOS can be prone to lying, Chell is well aware of this fact.

_anonymous asked: "when glados says "i hate u" to chell quickly pull out a lie detector.... i can imagine what happens..."_   
  
  


“I hate you so much.”

GLaDOS’s voice came out as a low, irritated hiss, and she pinched the bridge of her nose in annoyance as she stared at the human in front of her.

She had just been informed that Chell had been exploring around Old Aperture once more, and had accidentally triggered a chain reaction of multiple things falling apart. According to her, it started with a rusty old catwalk that SEEMED safe, and only got worse from there. Because of all this, a large chunk of Old Aperture, that GLaDOS had been looking to further study, was currently buried under rubble and other broken items. And since she had no control of the facility down there, she’d have to send Orange and Blue to go clean it up, which would take time.

To Chell’s credit, the girl had apologized, and moved as much of the stuff as she was able, but some of it was simply too dangerous for a human to move on her own, and despite her annoyance, GLaDOS was thankful Chell hadn’t been stubborn enough to try, and harm herself in the process.

_‘I did find some stuff while I was down there, so it wasn’t a total waste.’_

Chell signed this before gesturing to her shoulder bag, which did seem relatively full.

The girl had taken to finding old trinkets while she explored, so GLaDOS had asked her to pick up anything that might be of interest for the core as well, while she was down there. It was a fairly good deal, so the android couldn’t really complain. But… she was going to.

“That doesn’t change the fact that I hate you.”

She snipped, golden optics narrowed. To an outsider, her words would seem overly harsh. And perhaps they were, in concept. Her relationship with Chell had progressed to the point that the words had little sting, and she was fairly certain the girl was simply amused by them. Like she saw GLaDOS as a cat with no claws. No matter how much she hissed, she was harmless.

However this time, Chell’s response wasn’t to simply chuckle or roll her eyes. Instead, she grinned, and reached inside her bag, pulling out something that appeared to be nothing but more junk.

“…What is that?”

In fact, it looked like… a child’s toy? It seemed to be made rather badly, out of once brightly colored plastic that had been dulled with dirt and time.

_‘Lie detector.’_

Chell mouthed this, seeming quite proud of herself as she brushed it off and turned it on. She must’ve already put new batteries into the thing, as it flickered to life almost instantly.

“Surely you know those things don’t work, right? They’re little more than a toy to waste childrens’ time.”

The ex-test subject only smiled. Seeming as if she was waiting for the core to say something in particular. GLaDOS had a pretty strong idea as to what.

“Oh you want me to test it? Fine. I hate you.”

She snapped, trying her hardest to glare the girl down.

Instead, Chell responded by looking down at the device in her hands, grinning like a moron.

Smugly, she held it up, showing the screen to the core.

_‘LIE,’_ was written across the screen in bright red text.

GLaDOS puffed her chest out, her eyelid twitching somewhat.

“That thing is clearly broken!”

_‘LIE’_

“I still hate you!”

_‘LIE’_

“Oh shut up!”

Chell looked up, a sheepish grin on her face.

_‘I wasn’t talking,’_

“I know you weren’t, you mute lunatic. But I swear if I see that thing one more time, I WILL break it.”

_‘TRUTH’_

GLaDOS raised an eyebrow at the machine, catching the text on the screen as Chell put it away, a satisfied grin on her face.

Maybe that thing was a little more accurate than she wanted to admit.


	18. Foreign

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> GLaDOS finds language fascinating, and enjoys flaunting her abilities in these fields.

_anonymous asked: "Chell being called pet names in languages she doesn't understand and when she asks what they mean, Glados pretends she doesn't do it"_   
  
  


Chell was fluent in two languages.

She understood perfect english and could speak it- despite only actually speaking when she really needed to- and she knew sign language. That was her primary form of communication.

Knowing two languages came in handy, but that knowledge paled in comparison to a certain Queen of Aperture.

Of course Chell should’ve expected the core to flaunt her abilities somewhat, she was a supercomputer, and a rather proud supercomputer at that. She had access to information and skills that would take humans years and years to fully understand, and she could do it in seconds. That involved insanely advanced and-in Chell’s opinion-pointless math, a tediously in-depth knowledge of very specific events in history, and of course, being able to speak every language known to man.

And that was incredibly hard to keep up with.

It wasn’t like the core was constantly speaking in foreign languages, for the most part GLaDOS spoke english. But there was… the occasional exception.

Pet names.

Or, what Chell could only assume were pet names, she had no idea what the hell they all meant, only the tone of voice used to speak them, and the context of which they were used.

She had never expected the core to be one for affectionate names, but ever since the two of them started seeing each other in a romantic light, she was proven wrong.

One in particular stood out to Chell, as she had heard it before.

If the AI was in a good mood, she’d often address Chell as ‘Cara mia,’ a term she had heard in the turrets’ farewell song to her nearly a year ago. She could tell it was Italian, but that was it.

She had no access to books on the subject, and every time she had asked the core, GLaDOS acted completely oblivious.

It annoyed Chell to not know something, but GLaDOS used the words in an agreeable manner, and it seemed affectionate enough, so she let it go.

But that wasn’t the end of it.

She was leaning against the core on a couch in her room, snuggling up to the android’s warm body and nearly falling asleep. GLaDOS had been running her hands through Chell’s hair, massaging her scalp and humming softly. It was enough to nearly knock her human out cold, as she was already exhausted from a long day of jumping from test chamber to test chamber. But one thing shook her back into the waking world.

_“Hm… Ma bella.”_

The core purred these words out, her voice as smooth as silk. Despite how pleasing they were to the ear, that didn’t change the fact that this was something completely new, and still, something completely alien to Chell.

She shook herself awake, shifting to face the core and raising her hands to hastily sign,

_‘See! That was what I’ve been trying to ask you about! What did you just say?’_

Her expression was somewhat exasperated, though still a bit dazed and sleepy. She was determined to get an answer out of GLaDOS, as curiosity bubbled in her chest.

  
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

GLaDOS smugly responded, a grin on her face that rivaled that of the Cheshire cat. She knew exactly what Chell was asking, yet still refused to answer. She enjoyed this. She took extreme pleasure in taunting Chell.

And while Chell was far too tired to get properly angry, she puffed out her cheeks in annoyance, hoping that shooting the AI a pout would get her to break.

…It didn’t. All it earned was an amused chuckle from the core, who moved to stand up.

“Don’t worry so much. You can’t understand everything, that’s my job.”

Chell still frowned, though allowed GLaDOS to pick her up and move her to the bed. She was definitely still annoyed at the core for dodging the question, but… maybe it could wait until tomorrow. This bed was seeming quite comfortable, and sleep sounded very good right about now.

Maybe… maybe this was just how GLaDOS showed affection, and how she was most comfortable. If so, who was Chell to be getting annoyed with the core? Perhaps she really should just let it go…

“See? You ought to get some sleep. You humans tend to need that.”

Chell nodded sleepily, nuzzling her face into her pillow and yawning. She watched the core walk towards her door, her metal hand resting on the lightswitch before she looked over her shoulder at Chell, a twinkle of amusement gleaming in her optics.

“Sleep well… Liebling.”

And without missing a beat, GLaDOS turned the lights off, left the room, and closed the door behind her.

The result was a very rare, muffled yell of frustration coming from Chell’s room, and a supercomputer trying her hardest to contain her laughter as she walked back to her chamber.


	19. Relaxing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> GLaDOS finds comfort in the noises her human makes, particularly the ones that remind her that she's still alive.

_anonymous asked: "Thinking of how Chell is so calmed by the sounds Glados makes (her processors/singing) does Glados feel the same way? Maybe when Chell sleeps, GLaD listens to her breathing and heart and it relaxes her"_   
  


GLaDOS had never noticed it before. The little sounds that humans made- they fascinated her.

There was the more obvious and, frankly, obnoxious: screams of pain, yells of anger, and insistent complaining. Those were all common, and she had seen her fair share of them in the past.

Yet it took a mute for her to start noticing the small things, noises that her cameras couldn’t pick up.

  
She lay in the human’s bed, her metal arms loosely wrapped around her ex-test subject’s body, holding her close. Chell had been asleep for a little over two hours now, but GLaDOS remained awake. She could not sleep. Not out of inability, but out of disdain. She could sleep, but nightmares and old memories plagued her, and she would much rather avoid them.

However, she often joined Chell when she slept, acting as a personal heater and pillow to the girl. Little did the human know, she offered something to GLaDOS as well. Her heartbeat. Her breathing.

Soft noises, barely audible unless you were in complete silence. They were the only sounds in the small room, as GLaDOS had none of her own to give. If her processors overheated, they would give off a soft hum, but in moments like these, she was silent. No heartbeat, no breathing. She was not alive, she was not made of flesh and blood.

Chell though, Chell was _alive_.

When GLaDOS held the girl to her chest she could feel her heart beating, like a bird fluttering its wings. It was calming, and somehow still exciting. To hold something and to know it was alive.

And when she slept, GLaDOS noted the rise and fall of Chell’s chest as she breathed, in and out, slow and steady, a rhythm dictated by sleep.

It was all so simple, so… human. And while GLaDOS could claim to hate anything and everything human, when it was Chell, she seemed far more open to it all.

And now, as the core found herself lying in a near pitch black room, fighting back the temptation of sleep and promises of nightmares, she took comfort in these little things. She carefully pressed her face into the crook of Chell’s neck, finding her pulse and letting out a small sigh. Yes. She was here. She wasn’t stuck to the ceiling of her chamber, having core after core added to her. She wasn’t being meddled with, or having her body or mind altered. She was under no one’s control, she was just… here. Here with a human that she had despised so long ago, who she now held as tenderly as her powerful, metal body would allow.

With each beat of the girl’s heart, another moment in time passed. In Aperture it was so easy to forget the passage of time. Sometimes GLaDOS forgot how long it had been since the scientists had been alive. More than once she had woken in a panic, half expecting that she had been shut down by the scientists, expecting to awaken with a new voice in her head.

But if she woke up with Chell in her arms, lying on a soft bed with a warm body beside her and a gentle heartbeat to soothe her, her fears seemed to melt away, at least in the moment.


	20. Skinny Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> GLaDOS makes a discovery that could be considered quite ironic, but it is no laughing matter.

_anonymous asked: "Oh my *god* I didn't know people were still active in this fandom/ship and I'M SO HAPPY!! If you're still doing requests would you mind doing something small where Chell takes off her shirt to shower or something and GLaDOS realizes how alarmingly thin she is from all that time asleep, and does her best to casually apologize for the comments about Chell's weight."_  
  


Let it be said that, for all the things GLaDOS had done, she hadn’t ever watched the cameras in the test subject showers while humans were in there. Not out of any concern for their privacy; she spied on them in practically every other way. She supposed she just had no real interest in watching naked humans cover themselves in soap to make their disgusting bodies slightly less disgusting.

And besides, every human was dead anyway, so the cameras were nothing more than a formality.

Well, every human except for one. Chell, her former test subject. She had let the girl go, but Chell had found herself back here regardless. In a world where everything was dead, it only made sense to return to live with a robot.

  
So with a human finally _living_ in its halls again, not being confined to test chambers, Aperture’s shower room finally got some usage.

  
GLaDOS had no real reason to check the camera when she noticed Chell walking in there, but a spark of curiosity tempted her to just… look. To see this whirlwind of a woman, powerful, stoic and unshakable, finally let her hair down. Quite literally- GLaDOS didn’t think she had ever seen the human with her hair out of its ponytail.

Chell walked to the very end of the room, picking the shower stall farthest from the door. It wasn’t as if there was any other humans in there for her to be avoiding, but perhaps it was just habit. GLaDOS watched with interest, the cameras whirring to life for the first time in years.

She could not tell if Chell had noticed them, but the AI assumed she had. There were several very obvious cameras lining the walls, though they didn’t look inside the stalls. Made the humans notice them, and assume there weren’t any more. That wasn’t true. Slightly more hidden ones were in each stall, providing a view of anything the test subjects did.

GLaDOS hadn’t designed this area, but she could only assume the scientist who did was incredibly desperate.

So, both the outer and inner camera tracked Chell’s movements, watching as she grabbed soap and shampoo, disrobed, tested the heat of the stream of water, then got in.

There must’ve been at least a hundred things GLaDOS could have been looking at or studying. She could’ve thought about how Chell relaxed under the hot water- how foolish, to let her guard down- or perhaps she could’ve noted how the human had accidentally gotten soap in her eyes when trying to wash her hair for the first time in many years.

But she didn’t. All GLaDOS could seem to notice about Chell in this moment, was her body. And, not in the way that the scientists who installed these cameras might have.

She did not stare at the girl’s long legs, or gawk at the way her silky, dark brown hair clung to her back when wet. Instead, there was a distinct twist of uneasiness in her non-existent stomach how just how… skeletal Chell seemed. Years of being asleep, time spent on the surface with likely little to no food source, and constant exercise resulted in a very clear outline of the former test subject’s ribs starkly showing against her skin.

GLaDOS supposed she ought not to care, it wasn’t her problem. Yet, guilt coiled inside her, and she found herself nervously tapping the armrest of her chair as she watched, wanting to look away but unable to tear her gaze from the screen.

 

_Do you pity her?_

 

Echos of a woman long dead rung in GLaDOS’s ears, causing her hand to twitch and her expression to shift, repressing the urge to verbally respond to a voice in her head.

Did she pity Chell? Was that the sole reason for her uneasiness? No.

She knew full well why she felt guilty. It was the comments, coming from herself, and at times, a certain, space bound moron. Teasing the girl for her weight, only in the opposite direction. Not once had GLaDOS ever made mention, or hell, even look all that closely at the girl’s form, especially not when it was hidden by baggy clothing. She had teased and poked at something so nonexistent, it was frankly ridiculous.

She pondered over this for a few moments, her mind swimming with thoughts, and her feelings uneasy.

Part of her wondered if Chell was aware of all this. If she knew what a bad state of health she appeared in be in. If so, why wouldn’t she say something? Well, maybe not SAY anything, but GLaDOS knew the girl was stubborn and seemingly quite fixed on keeping herself alive, so why not make some kind of indication that she needed something?

Was she simply not aware of the poor condition of her own body? Did she actually believe GLaDOS’s sarcastic comments? Surely not. Even GLaDOS herself had always known the insults were a stretch, but they were cheap, easy, low blows. They could dig deep and cause insecurity, and at the time, that had been her goal.

Now though, she found herself… regretting her words.

That thought alone caused her to recoil, her artificially constructed face to scrunch up with a mixture of confusion and surprise. That never happened. She didn’t take things back. She was _always_ right; she was the smartest being alive. This was her facility. She could do and say whatever she wanted, and she was justified.

To regret her comments over a pathetic feeling of guilt wasn’t right. The queen of Aperture had no reason to feel guilt. She would simply ignore it. Any problem will go away with enough time if you don’t think about it.

The android huffed, forcing her gaze to a different screen, staring at Orange and Blue testing with as much intensity and focus as she could muster.

However, the shower room camera screen remained in the corner of her eye, never leaving her peripheral.

Minutes passed like hours, and GLaDOS was not thinking about Chell. She was thinking about science, and she was not distracted. Any traces of guilt were gone, replaced by the cool, calm indifference of a true scientist.

No, she was not digging her fingers into the armrests of her chair. She was perfectly content.

…

Chell had finished her shower, GLaDOS noted. The water had been turned off, which prompted the core to glance at the screen just to… make sure there weren’t any problems with the plumbing.

The android couldn’t tear her eyes away this time, the feeling of unease that had lingered in her stomach only getting worse the more she stared.

Chell grabbed a towel and started drying her hair, slowly stepping out of the shower stall and into the open area where a clean set of clothes awaited her. She faltered as she moved, GLaDOS caught it. A small, barely noticeable movement, but seen by the core’s keen eye. For a second, the human’s legs shook, and she seemed unsteady. Tired. Exhausted even. Had she been like this the whole time?

GLaDOS did a quick scan of any footage of the test subject over the past hour or two, and found her answer. Chell was stubborn and determined, but not immortal, and most definitely human. Her breathing had been shallow all day, and she took frequent, very short breaks. No longer than a minute, but it seemed the girl was stopping far more often than GLaDOS remembered.

She wasn’t lazy, she was genuinely unable to keep going like this. And yet, she did nothing to change it. She went about her day with her head held high, as prideful as a lioness, strutting around Aperture like she owned it.

At first, it didn’t make any sense to the robot. Chell was so hyperfocused on her own survival, facing anything the world threw at her just to keep her own life. She’d take down a god for her life and freedom, only to waltz right back on her own terms when she needed it. So why not seek help? Why not request assistance from GLaDOS?

Then, it dawned on her.

The AI’s comments actually got to the girl. Whether she believed them or not, they had an effect. Maybe she believed the core completely, or maybe knew she needed help but expected more cruel comments from the core if she asked for help.

It seemed impossible, that petty, little insults were enough to get under Chell’s skin when she appeared so unshakable and collected in the face of said comments when they were thrown at her, but the evidence lined up.

Before the core even realized what she was doing, she had turned her mic on, and started to speak.

“Of course. You always manage to cause problems, don’t you?”

GLaDOS hardly knew what she was saying before it came out of her mouth, the words tumbling out with little grace.

Chell looked up at the camera, a shirt halfway over her head and a confused expression on her face. She hadn’t done anything.

“I really do hate being wrong, and it isn’t my fault you humans are so fickle.”

The android felt a rush of heat surge to her face as she scrambled to explain herself without actually apologizing. She felt this overwhelming urge to relieve herself of this guilt, but she couldn’t apologize. She couldn’t. She didn’t know how. It made her feel weak, human.

Quickly and vainly trying to compose herself, she spoke again, trying to sound as professional as possible.

“For the sake of being an accurate source of knowledge at all times, we at Aperture Science… temporarily take back any comments on excessive body mass on your part. Aperture Science will aid you in fixing this inaccuracy, after which you will be required to properly maintain your mind and body in order to qualify as a viable test subject. You are dismissed.”

Slowly, the feeling of uneasiness lessened. GLaDOS let her shoulders relax, and found herself checking to see if there was any cake mix laying around.


	21. Whistle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> GLaDOS tries something new.

_anonymous asked: "I can totally see GLaDOS (android glados) trying to whistle for chell but she can't get it and it annoys her to no end."_   
  


GLaDOS could sing. There was no doubt about it. Her voice rivalled that of any human, and her songs were pleasant to the ear of even the most stubbornly grumpy of humans.

But for the life of her, she couldn’t seem to whistle.

In her chassis she could play the sound of a whistle, or recreate it artificially, but she couldn’t properly do it. When she built herself an android body however, she figured she’d be able to do it just fine.

But she couldn’t. It surprised her the first time she tried, attempting to carry a tune, only to pathetically blow air from her metal lungs.

She was taken aback, and frankly, offended. She had made this body to be as accurate as possible, just to show off. She built herself the perfect human form, to show the- mostly non-existent- humanity what they COULD be, if they were only able to be as perfect as she was.

However, in making herself human, she found that despite her best efforts, there were flaws. Not everything came naturally; some things needed practice.

Besides, she knew whistling wasn’t exactly something in Chell’s set of skills, so the computer decided that she’d figure something out, just to be able to show off a little to her human.

A little practice wouldn’t be too bad, would it?

And that was exactly how Chell managed to walk in on GLaDOS vainly sputtering out air and making faces that had the girl on the floor in seconds, clutching her sides and almost crying with laughter.


	22. Oracle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A turret makes GLaDOS think about things she would rather not.

_anonymous asked: "Imagine GLaDOS meeting the oracle turret. I feel like they wouldn't get along since it knows so much about GLaDOS and what happened."_   
  
  


Aperture Science was her domain.

A Queen’s kingdom, an extension of herself.

GLaDOS WAS Aperture Science.

But that didn’t mean she liked all of it.

From the corrupt cores to the defective turrets, little things irked her. And when she found any of these little annoyances- stains on the pristine white cloth that was Aperture- she did not hesitate to destroy them.

However, as she was strolling through her chambers, she paused.

A turret, taken off the disassembly line, propped up against the wall, its eye looking around until it caught sight of GLaDOS. It stared for a moment, before speaking.

_“Her name is Caroline.”_

A spark of annoyance came to life in GLaDOS’s chest at these words, her optics flaring with anger. That name. _Caroline_. Ever since her unfortunate trip into the depths of Aperture’s past with a certain mute lunatic, that name had been ringing in her head.

Caroline. Cave Johnson’s secretary. The backbone of the facility. The sole reason that GLaDOS even existed.

Caroline became GLaDOS.

The core had struggled with this knowledge from the minute she heard it, and even now had to question herself at all times, wondering just how much of _herself_ she actually was, and how much was just Caroline’s leftovers.

Chell never spoke of the woman- though that wasn’t saying much, considering the girl didn’t speak at all- and GLaDOS was doing her best not to think about it, trying to avoid the difficult emotions that came with.

So this defective piece of scrap metal was NOT helping.

…She didn’t know why she didn’t kill it right on the spot. Perhaps because she knew that Chell likely was the one who saved it, and would no doubt be upset. Or maybe because deep, deep down, GLaDOS was curious how this thing even knew the name Caroline.

“Shut up.”

GLaDOS shook herself out of her own thoughts long enough to snap at the turret, her voice sharpened with the edge of defensiveness that came with anything the core said about Caroline.

For a moment, the turret was silent, and GLaDOS wondered if it had actually listened.

She considered walking away, but something compelled her to sit down on an old storage cube, and watch the disassembly line work. Admittedly, she wasn’t really paying much attention. Her mind had wandered to Caroline despite her best attempts to stop it, and as it so frequently did, left her in a state of internal debate as she mulled it all over to the point of obsession.

What was Caroline now? Did she exist in GLaDOS’s mind? Was GLaDOS herself simply an evolved version of Caroline’s personality? Was she nothing more than a failed science experiment? Would the facility have been better off if Caroline was in control instead of GLaDOS? If things went according to plan, and ‘GLaDOS’ never happened? No doubt the human scientists would’ve lived, thrived even. The test subjects likely wouldn’t have been thinned out so quickly, their lives put into more careful care by someone as human as Caroline was.

The core let out a small scoff, despite herself.

Chell would’ve been happy about that, wouldn’t she? Maybe she could’ve just done her tests and gone home if Caroline was here. She could’ve gone about her life, gotten old and died on the surface ~~- _instead of being stuck down here with a **mistake** that clung onto her like a **parasite** -_~~

  
_“She never saw what could’ve been.”_

  
The turret spoke, violently shaking GLaDOS from her train of thought, her head snapping to the side to look at the metal pest. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came. She stared down at the thing, her emotions raging like a storm inside her, begging to break free of the chains she struggled to put on them.

For a moment, her own thoughts were silenced, the words of the turret echoing in her head. Part of her was confused, and did not understand a thing that the creature had said. The other part knew full well what it meant.

Abruptly, she stood up and turned to leave, intending to make her way to her chamber and forget all this. But before she could leave, one last sentence rung out in the silence behind her, finishing the thought of the oracle.

  
_“She found the shadow more interesting than the figure who cast it.”_

  
GLaDOS never looked back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This isn't as chelldos-y as the others, but it is implied.


	23. Return

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Invisible strings pull Chell back, she does not fight them.

_anonymous asked: "Chell, after spending a long time outside with other people, feeling like something's missing and going back to the wheat field shed and opening the door to Aperture. The lift is still there. She climbs around it and cautiously walks around on the catwalks for a while until she finds a camera. GlaDOS asks why she came back. Neither words nor gestures could convey Chell's answer, so eventually, she just touches her fingers to the camera and leaves. Two weeks later, she's back again."_  
  


Humans were resilient creatures.

This was a fact made clear by many things about them, both on an individual scale, or a much larger one.

Chell had returned to the surface to find the world in pieces, but humanity remained, trying to put itself back together. They formed communities, towns, families. Life was not easy out here, but humans had found a way. She had been amazed by it at first, though many would be equally awed by her own actions. She had fought and struggled and survived to make it up here, resisting any attempts to be put down.

She figured she’d like it up here.

…

How long had it been? Chell wondered, lying on an old mattress and staring at the water stained ceiling of her small bedroom. How long had she been up here? The chill of winter had come and gone three times already, so she knew she had been here for some time.

Yet time had not changed what she thought it would. She thought, that after all this time, thoughts of _her_ would go away. Thoughts of that place, the cage she had fought so desperately to be freed from, only to be let out calmly in the end.

Chell was happy to be on the surface. Happy to be with other humans. Happy to have this new life to live.

And yet despite how much she told herself that she was content, she could not make it fully true.

She wandered. Her feet moved without permission or plan, pulling her on a path that lead to both somewhere and nowhere.

Soon, the noise of the settlement she was staying in faded away, and the peaceful quiet of night became the only noise she heard. That, and the gentle whispers of wind that tickled her hair and brushed stalks of wheat against her skin.

A wheat field, abandoned and unused by anyone. Rumor was that the ground here had been poisoned and any crops grown here would be inedible, keeping almost all humans away.

Chell knew that wasn’t true, but never tried to dispel the talk. In fact, she encouraged it.

No one needed to find that metal shed. No one should find what lay beneath these fields.

Chell liked to tell herself she thought this out of a need to protect her fellow humans. Aperture was dangerous. _She_ was dangerous. If people tried to enter or explore Aperture, they could be hurt, or killed. That was why she helped the rumors along and kept anyone from straying this way.

Not because of a deep, subconscious possessiveness that ran in her veins. An urge to hold onto the secret of Aperture’s existence like it was something only she knew, like it was… important to her. That… was not the case.

Soon, she was standing in front of the run down, metal shed, placing her hand on the door without thinking and pulling it open. The rusted metal groaned as it was moved for what she could only assume was the first time since she had left, and she stepped inside. It was exactly how she left it. The shed was very small, acting only as a cover for a lift, still open, waiting to bring someone down into the depths of Aperture.

That someone was Chell.

She wasn’t keen on getting in the lift itself, instead looking around behind it to find things to climb down with. It took awhile, carefully moving downward and doing her best not to lose her footing, but eventually, she found what looked like a stop for the lift, perhaps for maintenance, based on how shabby and unpolished it looked.

Chell jumped down, and wasted little time exploring. The facility was silent, almost too much so. She would’ve been worried if she didn’t know better. While no sing-song turrets rang out, and she was not greeted by the sarcastic drawl of Aperture’s ruler, she knew that the queen was alive and well. And no doubt aware of Chell’s presence, despite her silence.

This was familiar. Catwalks and storage closets, unfinished areas and disassembly lines. She had once traveled these paths with purpose, now she wandered them aimlessly, losing herself in the soft noises of the facility.

It did not take long for her to find a camera.

Its red light on and optic moving as it followed her, standing stark in plain sight to anyone who cared to glance at the wall beside them.

Aperture never did make much of an effort to hide the cameras they used to spy with, but this one seemed particularly blunt.

Chell’s lips twitched upwards into something that might’ve been a smile. Someone was acting rather shy, if this was considered a greeting.

For a moment, she stared into the lens of the camera, studying it. It was not dormant, even if it had stopped moving once she noticed it. Chell **knew** that _she_ was watching. She could feel it, like a chill running down her spine, ending in red hot pins and needles pricking her fingers and toes. She might as well have been making direct eye contact.

After what felt like hours of consideration, with both Chell and the camera studying the other, a voice rang out, breaking through the silence like a rock thrown at a pane of glass.

“Why?”

The question was simple. The voice behind it, barely concealed under the guise of neutrality, its robotic edge ebbing away to reveal a deep longing to understand. Something deeper than mere curiosity. A need to know. To know why Chell would return here after so long, after all she had done to leave.

Chell could not answer the voice, not with words of her own. Her voice was not absent from her being, despite how it seemed. She could speak, but she could not say the words that she needed. Her throat constricted, and in this moment, she knew that despite her physical ability to speak, there was nothing she could say that would be truthful to what she felt. She was not certain she even fully knew what brought her here.

Yet, she would not leave the question to hang in the air like this. It was too heavy on her shoulders. And so, she slowly, carefully reached forwards toward the camera, her hand uncertain at first. Her fingers trembled, but any shakiness almost instantly disappeared once she touched the side of the camera. The metal was cool to the touch, and resulted in a small shudder passing through her body at the feeling.

She kept eye contact with the optic for a few long moments, keeping her fingers in place, resting gently against the metal of the camera’s body. Then, she pulled away, and the unseen force that had brought her here led her back the way she came. She turned and left, climbing out of the facility in complete silence. She was not stopped, nor chased out. Aperture had been her cage for so long, and that fact never changed. The only difference was that now, the door was always wide open. For her. Only for her.

Be it fate or something else, but this would not be the last time that Chell walked Aperture’s halls.

As a matter of fact, the Queen of Aperture need not wait more than a few weeks.

A wild animal would fight tooth and nail to escape a closed cage, but leave that door open, and that cage becomes a lot more enticing. A place to explore, a shelter, perhaps even a home of sorts.

That much was yet to be seen.


	24. Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> GLaDOS wishes to turn back the clock. Or, smash it completely.

_anonymous asked: "It is possibly angst, but what if, as GLaDOS and Chell's bond becomes stronger, the AI starts to feel despair because she wishes Chell to stay by her side forever? GLaDOS doesn't want the woman to grow old and die, but at the same time she doesn't wish to be like Cave Johnson, who forced Caroline into a fate of unwanted immortality. Maybe she could map human's genes and find the one responsible to old age and use idk nanotechnology to stop it."_  
  


Only a madman would try to defy the passage of time. Something so unknown, yet so profound. Something that no one fully understood, yet everything abided by. From plants, to animals, to the very earth that they lived on. Everything bent to the will of father time.

But if there was someone, a person or an entity confident or foolish enough to try and stand up to such a force, it would no doubt be Aperture Science.

They had tried to meddle with time at least once in the past, but they hadn’t been even remotely close to fully defying it. The experiments failed, their attempts barely making a dent on the fabric that they so wished to rip.

Those men were driven by curiosity, the need to play with things that were deemed off limits, wanting to control forces they couldn’t even begin to understand.

The second attempt however was much, much different. The forces behind it were no longer mere curiosity and a need to prove one’s abilities, but something much stronger.

Love.

GLaDOS didn’t like to think about the passage of time. What did it matter? She would live forever. Time was something that affected living beings, and she was not alive. Not in the traditional sense. And so, for the longest time, she hardly even thought about the ticking of a clock.

But that all changed with Chell. A human. A foolish, foolish human. She had wormed her way into GLaDOS’s heart, grabbed onto it, and wouldn’t let go. Trust and affection came slowly, but before she knew it, the AI found herself caring for this girl with every fiber of her being.

She checked, and it had been years since they put down their weapons and called a truce. Quite a few years actually, almost fifteen.

And, upon looking back on old footage, GLaDOS could not deny that Chell changed somewhat with age. She was not an old woman by any means, but little changes were noticeable. A small crease in her brow, formed by how much the girl furrowed it. The traces of lines under her eyes and at the corners of her mouth when she smiled.

Not counting her time in cryosleep, the ex-test subject was only almost middle aged, but it was enough to get GLaDOS thinking.

Chell aged like any human would. Slowly but steadily, she would get older. Eventually, she’d be weaker, unable to do the athletic stunts that she pulled today. Her body would fail, and she would die.

She would die, and she’d be gone, and GLaDOS would be alone once again.

GLaDOS could not let that happen.

That night, she held Chell closer than usual. She didn’t loosely drape her arms over the human’s body while they both rested, she held onto the woman like an anchor, keeping her body as close as she possibly could. Chell had let out a small, surprised chuckle, murmuring a questioning comment towards GLaDOS’s sudden clinginess. For a moment, the core debated voicing her thoughts. But… she didn’t. It was late, and perhaps it would just be better for the both of them to get some sleep. Surely she’d just forget about this whole aging thing for a while when morning came.

She didn’t.

Unfortunately, the core had a bit of a bad habit when it came to over thinking things like this. Worries and ‘what ifs’ would bounce around in her head, getting worse and worse and building her anxiety until one of two things happened. She cracked under the pressure and Chell noticed, often helping to calm her down and work out the issue, or she continued to hold it in, and furiously try to find a solution to the source of her anxiety. Sometimes it worked, but frequently the situation would get worse and the former would end up happening regardless.

This time, however, GLaDOS didn’t think Chell would be able to help.

No doubt if she knew the AI’s worries she’d simply give that bittersweet, knowing smile that came up whenever the topic of humans came up, and respond with something that should’ve been soothing, if GLaDOS could only listen to sweet nothings.

_‘We have plenty of time.’_

_‘Let’s just enjoy what we do have.’_

_‘Well then, make sure you make the most of my youthful energy.’_

Somehow, these were all responses that GLaDOS could easily see coming from Chell, and each one caused a deep pang of hurt to bury into her chest.

Chell didn’t understand the feeling of immortality. You could not live in the moment, you could not simply enjoy the now. Constantly the thoughts of the future haunted. Chell could live her life to the fullest, and be content when she passed. GLaDOS could not have that. She would be forced to remain the same while Chell changed, and eventually died. How could she enjoy the now, when what seemed so far away was also creeping up so quickly?

She had to fix this. She knew not how, but she had to. GLaDOS could not let Chell slip through her fingers, it would hurt too much.

And so, the core got to work. So many humans had searched for immortality throughout history, surely it must be possible that one of them was at least a little close to being on to something?

Unfortunately the answer was, not really. ‘Magical spells’ and mixtures of herbs, weird chants and something to do with virgins and moonlight did nothing for GLaDOS. She needed something tangible. Something with cold, hard science.

She threw herself into her work. She researched, she poured over any piece of information she could find. She tested her theories on any animals she could snatch off the surface and breed for mini test subjects, hoping to find some good signs.

Throughout all this, Chell had noticed the AI’s odd behavior. She had confronted GLaDOS about it, but the core quickly became defensive on the matter and refused to talk about it. Chell, understanding that the topic was not one that GLaDOS was ready to share, was patient. She stayed by the robot’s side, and treated her no differently.

In turn, GLaDOS found herself desperately trying to juggle working as hard as possible, while still trying to dedicate as much time to her human as she could. After all, if her experiments failed, she would have wasted all this time that she could’ve been spending with Chell.

It was a mental war, constantly waging in her head, pulling her at the seams.  
And it was not made any easier by a lingering thought that persisted in her mind whenever she felt hopeless in her endeavors. If she could not stop aging itself, if she could not find a way to keep Chell’s mind and body alive and healthy forever, there was one other option.

She could end up like GLaDOS. She could be put into a machine and made to live forever. GLaDOS could even make her an android body that looked exactly like the one she had now. It would be so… easy. She’d never have to worry about losing the girl again.

… The thought alone made her sick. Despite having no gag reflex in her body, thinking about doing something like that to Chell made the core want to vomit. Perhaps when they first met she might’ve wished that fate upon the human, but not now. Not after all they had been through. GLaDOS cared for a precious few things in this world, and those she did, she would never want to see destroyed. While the transfer to a robotic body could technically work, GLaDOS knew first hand what it did to you. How it felt. The violation she had experienced as a result.

Chell would not be the same after that. And even if the girl did it willingly, GLaDOS knew she wouldn’t be able to bring herself to do it.

So, the core kept searching. She kept studying, working, desperately searching for an answer, refusing to answer the little voice in her head that reminded her of the easy way out of this.

  
Finally, when it seemed she was at her breaking point, she found something. Nanotech, used to alter the makeup of human genes. Creating a perfect replica of Chell’s DNA, and training nanobots to recreate the correct cells, and take the place of damaged and weakened ones. She tested it on creatures with very brief lifespans, as short as a few days. After tinkering with it, she found the life of an insect expected to live no more than two days could survive nearly two weeks in good health.

She was stunned. Thrilled, nervous, almost ready to cry. She’d no doubt need hundreds more tests done to make sure it would be safe and effective for humans but… she might’ve found the cure to time.

That night when Chell entered her chamber, GLaDOS practically ran to the girl, sweeping her up in her arms and peppering her face with excited kisses. Even if just for tonight her anxiety faded. A possible solution was in sight, practically in reach. This was the happiest she had been in months, and it showed. Chell, despite her confusion, beamed just as brightly as GLaDOS, seeming to be over the moon that her lover seemed genuinely happy about something. She had been worried about the core, and while that worry would likely still remain until she got an answer to GLaDOS’s odd behavior, for now she just seemed thankful for a ray of hope.

However, when GLaDOS eventually did tell her what she had been doing, Chell hesitated.

She frowned somewhat, seemingly torn. Humans weren’t meant to live forever, and she was unsure if she even wanted to.

GLaDOS was devastated. She urged Chell to trust her on this. She wouldn’t live forever, but her lifespan could be more than doubled in length. Hell, if GLaDOS could figure it out, she might even be able to make the girl’s body feel even younger than she was now if she wanted. But she begged Chell to, at the very least, let the core extend her life.

Chell did not know how to react at first. She stared at her lover, searching the core’s optics for the truth behind all this. In Chell’s mind, this was coming out of nowhere. She was not old or frail; why did the AI worry so?

“Please, Chell… I…I can’t lose you.”

GLaDOS practically croaked this out, the weight on her heart finally crushing enough to cause her to break in front of the girl. She no longer cared about holding an appearance of strength or indifference, not now. She just needed to put this fear to rest. To tame the growing panic in her chest whenever she glanced at a calendar or clock.

She hardly noticed that she had fallen to her knees, the cold floor not registering in her mind. Instead, what made her look up was Chell’s warm arms wrapping around her. The girl kneeled down, and pulled GLaDOS to her chest, letting the android listen to her heartbeat for a moment.

The sound was something of a comfort to the core, but now more than ever. The soft thump of a living, beating heart.

A strangled sob escaped her throat without warning, and she could feel the slight burn of tears forming in the corners of her eyes. A pointless addition to her android form; she was going to stain Chell’s tank top.

The human didn’t seem to care. She ran her hand up and down GLaDOS’s back, murmuring soft words of comfort. Her voice was no longer alien to the AI, but somehow it still made her non-existent heart skip a beat.

_“…I’m not going anywhere yet, GLaDOS. And… I will think about your offer.”_

 

That was the closest thing to a yes that GLaDOS needed right now. She would perfect her tech needed for the operation in the case of the girl saying yes, and in case she said no…

GLaDOS’s hands fiddled with something, a piece of metal that looked a lot like a computer chip. On it, was a small, digital clock, able to be set to a number of years, months, days, and hours. If Chell said no, GLaDOS would fix her problem in a different way.

She would never ask Chell to live as an android and survive forever. She would much rather live like a human, and give herself an expiration date.


	25. Company

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> GLaDOS needs Chell's help with something, but she isn't exactly being upfront.

_anonymous asked: "I imagine Glados is the type to occasionally summon Chell to her chamber for no reason. She's just bored and wants company (and the doors spontaneously "malfunction" during the visits so Chell stays longer)"_   
  
  


Chell figured that at this point, she ought to have learned some of GLaDOS’s tells. The AI was hard to read in some moments, yet very obvious in others. It had been no secret when the AI was interested in her romantically- at least once she finally realized it herself and started acting more like a lovesick teenager and less like she was allergic to Chell- and it was equally easy to tell when the core was being grumpy.

But some things were much harder to notice. When the core was worried about something; afraid. If she felt insecure or unwanted. Chell had asked the core to, if she was comfortable, try to be more open about those things, as Chell desperately wanted to help her, but could not if she didn’t know what was wrong. GLaDOS had agreed.

Unfortunately, she never agreed to be more open with less serious topics. Hence, she still managed to fool Chell a handful of times.

She had called the girl to her chambers, telling her that she was urgently needed. Chell, assuming the worst, practically ran down there Maybe the facility was malfunctioning, maybe the core was in danger, maybe-

Nothing was wrong. GLaDOS was hanging in her chamber, absentmindedly looking at her various screens and humming to herself.

Chell was a bit confused, slowly walking up to her robotic companion, her expression curious and questioning.

“Ah, you’re here. Perfect timing, I desperately need your help with something. I was thinking about redoing the panels in this room, so I need you to count them. All of them.”

The way the core spoke, in such a matter-of-fact manner, almost made what she was saying sound normal. Almost. Chell did a small double take, looking at the AI as if she had grown an extra head.

There was no doubt in Chell’s mind that GLaDOS could definitely figure out how many panels were in this room within seconds. Surely she didn’t need Chell’s help.

“Well don’t just stand there, get started. Come, sit down. If you get tired you might not be as accurate, and we don’t want you losing count.”

GLaDOS had an office chair sitting directly next to her, that she was now gesturing at with her giant metal head, looking expectant.

Slowly, Chell walked over, still trying to wrap her head around this. GLaDOS was acting weird. Not something-might-be-wrong weird, just… weird.

She couldn’t seem to figure out exactly what about it was weird though, until she had counted to panel eighty-nine, when it hit her.

GLaDOS’s odd, incredibly time consuming request, the chair placed just a little closer than usual, and the way the core had been inching closer and closer to her with every passing minute.

A grin broke out on the ex-test subject’s face, and for a moment she debated breaking her usual silence in favor of making a snide comment.

GLaDOS wanted attention, but was a little too proud to properly admit it.

Chell continued counting, but payed much less attention to the panels on the wall, instead focusing on giving her large metal companion affectionate pats to the sides of her chassis.

“…Oh well… this is unfortunate. It seems the doors have… malfunctioned for the time being, so sorry.”

GLaDOS spoke up suddenly after a good ten minutes, somehow managing to sound both embarrassed and professional at the same time. Her optic was looking anywhere but at Chell, and if she had a human body, she would no doubt be blushing a dark red.

A quick glance to the doors did, in fact, confirm that any and all doors to the chamber were shut tight. Once upon a time this thought might’ve frightened Chell. Being trapped in a room with a killer AI; easy prey. Now though, she was quite certain that the worst thing she would suffer would be a persistent headbutt or aggressive cuddling.

Besides, being ‘trapped’ in here for a little longer wouldn’t be too bad. She had only counted one hundred and five panels so far, and she was certain that there were more.


	26. Secrets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> GLaDOS has a reputation to uphold.

_anonymous asked: Knowing Glados she would probably make Chell swear to secrecy about their "affection sessions" (she can't uphold a big bad reputation with all of aperture knowing she has a weakness for pats)_  
  
  


“…You…won’t tell…a soul…understand?” GLaDOS’s voice was breathy, almost as if she was panting and needed air, despite her body’s lack of reliance on oxygen. Her chassis hung limply in the middle of her chamber, but for once it was not due to any injuries or unconsciousness. Instead, the AI was rendered practically useless under the gentle caress of a single human. She tried to keep a sarcastic bite in her voice, but she knew the attempt was futile as a mute lunatic- no, her mute lunatic, ran her hands over GLaDOS’s faceplate, occasionally pressing her lips to the sides of it, sending sparks of warmth all throughout her circuits.

‘There’s no one to tell.’

The AI just barely caught sight of the human mouthing these words, raising her optic a small amount to meet the test subject’s gaze. The human hadn’t actually spoken, yet somehow GLaDOS could still feel warmth from her words. A gentle amusement, and a strong wave of affection. She almost would’ve shied away from such emotions, if she hadn’t already been lulled to such a state. “Still… this stays…between us…” GLaDOS managed to get another sentence out, despite feeling as if her body’s main functions had been slowed fifty percent. She’d be concerned, if this had been the first time this happened.

‘I promise.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not really taking requests anymore, but somehow I kinda ended up doing a handful of very short ones recently, so I'll be posting some of them.


	27. Roleswap

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things are turned on their heads when Chell and GLaDOS switch places.

_anonymous asked: (Let me just say I love this account so much and it's AUs so~)Consider reverse chelldos AU; chell is a nonverbal robot and GLaDOS a human scientist assigned to test her functions. I don't know if it could tie into the timeline accordingly but I haven't seen anything like it proposed in the fandom_   
  
  


“We designed you with the capability to talk you know. And yet… you refuse to do so. Is it a malfunction? …No, I don’t believe so.”

Gladys spoke aloud to an almost empty room, carefully putting down a clipboard and pencil she had been holding, and making her way outside of the control room and into the central AI chamber. It was late at night, most scientists had gone home, and the remaining ones were packing up and leaving. She was alone in the chamber, aside from one creature.

A supercomputer. Their supercomputer. C.H.E.L.L. Designed to help them do science, the AI stood in the middle of the room, unmoving. She was not shut down, though most of the scientists here would not dream of approaching her without doing so. They were afraid of her. A silent robot, hanging somewhere in the uncanny valley, with its humanlike appearance. It stood in a body designed as an android, but it was trapped in place due to its harness, wires for its power keeping it bound in place.

“I know you can hear me, and I know you can understand me. You are the smartest computer the world has ever seen. Made to do science at the command of mankind.” Gladys stood directly in front of the android now, staring up into its two, unblinking optics. They both shined an icy blue, staring down at Gladys, examining her. It knew her. It knew who she was. Gladys was the scientist who was to work with her, test her abilities. Gladys was different from the other scientists. She looked at this computer with something other than the awe and fear that came from most others. She looked at this AI with promise, fascination, and an odd connection.

“You were designed for a purpose, yet you deny what they ask of you. I’ve seen it, you refuse. You stay silent despite our demands, and you ignore their orders to test. You have wants, don’t you?”

Gladys’s tone was questioning, despite knowing she would not receive an actual answer. She spoke to this computer like one might speak to a fellow being. She was not only fascinated by it, but drawn to it. She wanted to understand it.

The android tilted its head somewhat, seeming almost curious. It stared at Gladys with an expression that the scientist had not seen during the day. A raw interest, a longing for information. It almost appeared to be as fascinated by Gladys as the scientist was with her.

“I know you want to learn, but not what we’ve tried to teach you. You want nothing to do with our tests and chambers, so what is it you seek?”

Gladys was blunt in her speech, unafraid of offering conversation, and possibly new resources, to an AI that she was supposed to view as an asset alone. The others would no doubt panic if they saw her treating the machine like this. Giving it a choice, speaking to it as if it were a living creature, and getting so close to it. This android might not have access to neurotoxin or turrets, but Gladys was more than close enough for it to reach out and break her neck with a single, metal hand. But she was not afraid.

C.H.E.L.L. did not respond to her question with words, but for once, it did not ignore what was said to it. Instead, it reached its arm out, the motion stiff, unpracticed. Its hand did not close around Gladys’s throat, but instead, touched her cheek. The movement was jerky, robotic. But even still, Gladys saw the intent behind it. The central core looked at her, curiosity showing through its admittedly limited range of facial expression. It touched her with such gentleness, Gladys was almost taken aback. Yet, she did not move away. She stood there, letting the robot touch her. Her fellow scientists would be furious now, if they saw this. She’d have to delete the security footage.

No one had let C.H.E.L.L. touch them. They had touched it plenty, but only when it was shut down. They did not trust their own creation, and they feared it turning on them. But now, as Gladys stood in front of it, watching it stroke her cheek with such fascination, something clicked in her brain.

The computer wanted nothing to do with science. It didn’t want to test, it stayed quiet in protest. But it did not want to harm the humans it interacted with.

“You want to understand, don’t you? You want to learn what it means to be human.”

C.H.E.L.L. looked at her, then gave a stiff nod. Gladys couldn’t help the smile that crept onto her face. Oh, if she didn’t already, now she’d definitely have to delete the security footage.


	28. Alternate Universes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part 1 of 2 in a series of short glimpses into various AUs

**(These all requests were sparked by**[this](http://ask-glados-queen-of-aperture.tumblr.com/post/164069821789/aus) **post)**  
  
**10\. Angel/demon**

“Going to all the trouble of summoning me…?” A smirk played on lips painted black, with short, white fangs poking out, glinting in the moonlight. The woman- the _creature_ \- stalked forward, heels clicking against the pavement.

Huge, black feathered wings unfurled from its back, stretching wide and blocking out the light of the moon and stars like a rip in reality. A long tail with an arrow-like tip swished back and forth, curling and swaying with each step forward the beast took.

When it finally stopped, it towered above the mortal who summoned it, harsh golden eyes glinting with excitement and amusement.

“…You must be very desperate… to call for the aid of a demon, _you lunatic._ ”  
  
\-------------------------------------------  
  
**1\. Pirate**

Chell had been warned ahead of time. One of the members of her crew, a scruffy, nervous sort of man with hair that seemed to stick out at every angle, had pulled her aside the night before, his sunken eyes wide with fear.

“The _sirens_ , captain. They’re near. They’ll sing, but you mustn’t listen. They only sing lies. Lies and death.”

He wrung his hands together nervously, eyes darting around to look at the vast, empty ocean around them, searching for some sign of the mythical creatures he had warned her of. If course, there was none.

However, they were getting closer to rocky coasts. The sea was open now, but there were islands nearby, Chell knew that. Many of them supposedly barren of life, but their jagged, deadly rocks were said to be home to dangerous temptresses.

So, when they approached, she warned her crew, and stood her ground. This was her ship, and her seas. She would not be frightened by naked sea-women with a taste for human blood.

The song was soft at first, haunting and distant. It caused the men aboard her ship to perk their ears and raise their heads, curious at the sound. Chell warned them to place their minds elsewhere, and focus on the sea. But as they got closer, the song grew stronger, more tempting. More and more of her crew started to give in. She watched as they sported eager, clueless grins, teetering on the edge of the ship, prepared to throw themselves overboard.

Chell pulled them back, but the closer they got to the rocks, the harder it became to focus on everything at once. With a thundering crash, the whole ship shook. The captain raised her head, looking around for the cause. The damn fools were genuinely trying to crash her ship.

She crossed the distance to them in two short bounds, grabbing one of the men by the shirt, having half a mind to throw him off the ship herself. But it was too late. She could feel the ship sinking, razor sharp rocks having pierced the wood as easily as one would snap a toothpick.

Chell felt her panic rise, eyes darting around. Her crew was useless. Bound to a spell, and either throwing themselves overboard, or simply letting the ship crash. Chell was a captain, not a miracle worker. So, she did the only sensible thing she could. She escaped. She lowered herself into a small boat, bringing it into the sea, with only the clothes on her back, some rope, and the sword at her side.

She could only watch as her precious ship capsized, feeling a stab of pain in her chest at the sight. The song still echoed, but she fought to keep it from her mind. It sounded like hundreds of voices at first, but as more of the ship sunk, it started to sound clearer, and less like an echo. Before she knew it, it sounded like only one voice. Right in her ear.

She grabbed her sword and whipped around, only to be met with the sight of a woman. Only one, lying on a nearby rock. It was close to the water, with every wave lapping at the woman’s bare legs. Her skin was as pale and perfect as fine china, flawless in every way. Her hair was a beautiful shade of blonde, almost as white as snow, and holding an otherworldly glow about it. She stared into Chell’s eyes, and even from the distance they had, Chell could see that they were a stunning shade of gold. Her lips moved carefully, a melody escaping them designed to lure Chell closer.

She didn’t even touch her oars. She simply stared at the figure, and crossed her arms in defiance.

The creature continued her song for a moment, before slowly stopping, and blinking at Chell, as if… confused. Then, with a splash, she jumped into the sea, disappearing amongst the choppy waves. But not for long. She resurfaced, only a foot or two away from Chell’s small life boat, somehow staying perfectly afloat in the rough waters. Her expression had changed now, her eyes no longer lidded and seductive, but instead, slightly narrowed. As if… annoyed.

“Well? I don’t have all day to sing to you, just jump in.”

Her voice was just as haunting as it had been in song, but now held a sharp edge, like she was telling Chell off. The captain scoffed under her breath, rolling her eyes. She grabbed both her oars, and started rowing in the opposite direction.

“Hey! You can’t just run off! What’s wrong with you, lunatic? Are you hard of hearing?”

A slight sound of splashing indicated that she was being followed, but Chell couldn’t care. She could hear just fine, she just wasn’t as fool hearted as her crew had been. She could ignore the siren’s temptation. And the siren didn’t like that one bit.

Somehow, Chell had the idea she wasn’t going to be traveling alone. A pissed off siren wasn’t exactly what she called company, but it seemed she had little choice.  
  
  
\-------------------------------------------

**5\. Supernatural**

Being dead wasn’t very fun. Lying in a coffin for hundreds of years really tends to give quite the unpleasant bits of back pain, and it’s dreadfully boring. So naturally, when a noisy brit and a silent woman accidentally reopen your tomb, you jump at the chance to walk amongst the living again.

GLaDOS wasn’t jumping for joy per say, but a slow smile worked its way onto her lips as she stood, flashing her long, pointed teeth, and smelling the air for a whiff of blood. In front of her stood two very pleasing options. One wasn’t human, she reckoned he might be some kind of fairy, or perhaps a very bad wizard. The blood of a supernatural was always interesting to taste, but not something GLaDOS preferred longterm. The blood of a human however? That was always a treat.

And as luck would have it, there was a perfectly fresh sack of meat right in front of her. Now if only said sack of meat _wasn’t_ a vampire hunter. Because that made things considerably more difficult.

 _“Oh, it’s **you.** ”_  
  
\-------------------------------------------

**25\. Western**

If you had asked Gladys what she expected to see in her bar today, this wouldn’t have been it. She expected the local drunks and low-lifes to come in and drown their sorrows. She expected to flash them a sickeningly sweet smile, only to lure them into the back and either rob them or kill them. Sometimes, both. After all, no one questioned where these men went. No one came looking for them, and she hid her tracks well. Hid it all behind a nice dress and a pretty face.

So when she came in, it gave Gladys pause. Tall, muscled, and completely stoic. Dusty and dirty like most of the folks around here, but holding herself far higher than the locals. A bandana tied around her neck, a hat atop her head, and silver spurs that glinted in the dim light of the bar at the late hour. Most fascinating of all though, was the weapon strapped in the holster on her side.

While mostly hidden, Gladys couldn’t help but notice it. It was pure white. A white revolver, looking almost brand new in contrast to the battered, scratched weapons that most people carried around. It must be worth quite the sum of money.

A smirk crossed her face. Certainly this traveler wouldn’t notice if she left this place a little lighter than when she walked in.

The woman walked up to Gladys, her stride long and purposeful. When she reached the bar, she seemed to look Gladys over from under the brim of her hat, her lips twitching downwards. It took a moment, but Gladys became acutely aware that she was being studied. Not just stared at by men frothing at the mouth to get at her, but genuinely observed. Like this woman knew something. Knew something that she shouldn’t.

“Well, what can I do for you? A drink perhaps? Or maybe… you’d like to speak with me?”

Gladys lowered her voice as she spoke, trying to catch the woman’s eye. She could feel the dagger that she kept strapped to her thigh, well hidden underneath her dress. All she needed to do was lure this poor sap into the back room, and she’d be dead before anyone could notice a thing.

But the woman didn’t answer her. Instead, she tipped her hat up just enough to look Gladys in the eye. Her eyes were like live steel, sharp, grey, and dangerous. She met Gladys’s gaze and she challenged her.

Clearly, she hadn’t come here for a drink.

  
\-------------------------------------------

**9\. Flower shop**

Gladys ran a tight business. They had tight competition with the flower shop down the road, and she wasn’t about to lose to the likes of them. Their flowers were second best, yet people kept buying from them. It drove her mad.

Because of this, she couldn’t afford to hire many people. She only had a handful. Three part time workers- all young college students- and one full time. The college students were loud and liked to talk to all the customers, each with varying levels of charisma.

Her full time worker however was near completely silent. Chell, her name was. She’d been working here for quite some time, and kept to herself and the flowers. She was fantastic with them, always knowing how to present them, which ones to pick, and what they meant. They had multiple customers come back and thank Gladys for the flowers Chell had picked for them, going on and on about how such and such loved the flowers, and how so and so was ever so thankful.

Gladys didn’t care much at first, business was business, but after awhile, she grew curious, and started to watch Chell work.

She stared at the woman as she walked amongst the plants, checking up on each and every one, making sure they weren’t wilting. Chell seemed to hold a love for these plants, and frankly, it was starting to rub off on Gladys.

However what the shopkeeper didn’t realize, is that Chell was completely aware of her staring. She could feel Gladys’s gaze on her back, and she knew the woman was watching. And so, one day, she did something about it.

It was near closing time, and Chell had been putting together a bouquet, and Gladys was at the front of house. She waited to close the shop until Chell was done, but oddly realized that she didn’t remember any calls coming in that day, or any customer who had bought flowers and hadn’t already gotten them. So what was Chell doing-

Chell interrupted her thoughts by tapping her shoulder, holding said bouquet in her free hand. She shot a smile in her boss’s direction, handing her the flowers.

“…What are these for? If there’s a customer these are for, I’m not going to deliver them for you-”

Chell waved her hand, pointing to the card attached. Slowly, Gladys lifted it, reading the note.

_‘Thought you might want these for your office in the back. I was thinking of you and I figured you’d like to liven that room up a bit.’_

Gladys blinked, surprised. She looked at the flowers the girl had chosen, identifying them quickly. Orange lilies, red poppies, purple violets, and the tiniest amount of coriander. It was a small, somewhat simple bouquet, but looked pretty enough. Varying colors, all vibrant and pleasing to the eye, without being too bright and obnoxious.

She looked back up, ready to say something akin to a thank you, followed by ‘these are coming out of your paycheck,’ but when she raised her head, the woman was gone, as silently as she had approached, she must’ve snuck out.

Gladys scoffed, trying to fight the smile off her lips as she walked towards her office. That woman was crazy. A real lunatic. But…

She didn’t mind a bit of crazy.  
  
\-------------------------------------------

**20\. Steampunk**

A soft ticking filled Chell’s ears, and she leaned back, admiring her work. Bronze and gold came together, along with the soft hiss of steam and the click of gears of different sizes.

She gazed up at her creation. Or rather, her repairs. She had found this… thing? This woman? abandoned in a nearby junkyard. Completely made of metal, but almost resembling a human in shape. She couldn’t tell what it had been intended for, as so many of the inner workings were far more complex than she had been expecting. But at the very least, she got it looking practically brand new.

Her hands were covered in a mixture of sweat and oil, and she hastily wiped them on her equally filthy rag. It had taken her most of the past three days, but she was certain she was finally done. She just needed to turn the lever on it’s back and-

“-BZZZT”

A loud, high pitched buzz cut through the air, and Chell jumped back, worried that she had placed something in the wrong spot. But thankfully, the noise only lasted a few seconds. The machine jolted upright from its slumped position into a rigid standstill, and its head twitched back and forth for a few moments before going very still. A soft whirring noise could be heard, and suddenly, its eyes flickered to life. They sparked and sputtered for a good, long moment, but eventually they seemed steady. A beautiful, bright golden gaze, fixed right on Chell.

It stared at her, and slowly tilted its head, the joints in its neck clicking loudly as it did so.

“…You’re not a scientist. You’re not even a professional.”

Its jaw moved awkwardly out of time with its voice box, which crackled and fizzed.

But most of all, it worked. Whatever it was, Chell was interested. Even if she didn’t know why it had been thrown to the scrap heap, and why maybe it should’ve stayed there.  
  
\-------------------------------------------

**22\. Stranded together**

“I can’t believe I’m stuck with you three.”

GLaDOS’s voice was a low hiss, irritation coming off of her newly made android body in waves. It was the perfect form, in theory. More advanced than any previous model, and fittingly intimidating.

And yet, she somehow managed up in a situation such as this. The body had malfunctioned, and her connection to the facility was severed temporarily, leaving her trapped in an old test chamber. That also meant she was stuck with three unfortunate companions.

Some of the corrupt cores she had used when testing prototype bodies. Each had a body with varying level of value. Space core was stuck with the least advanced, a body far similar to that of ATLAS or P-Body. Fact core had the next one, which at least begun to resemble something human in form, but was still very, very far off. It was only the Adventure core who came even somewhat close to GLaDOS’s final project. A human enough body in shape, but still requiring quite the suspension of disbelief.

GLaDOS had been happy to keep them confined to a certain number of test chambers and hallways while she worked, letting them roam unneeded areas of the facility while she waited to see if they’d be of use again. But now, as she was stuck in one of those very chambers, with three cores she was starting to wish she had killed.

“Come on gorgeous, there are worse places to be! Sure this old thing ain’t the place for a lady as lovely as yourself, but don’t worry, Rick’s here to keep you company.”

The Adventure core- or, Rick, as he seemed to like to call himself- slid up beside her, his voice grating on the central core’s nerves. She had half a mind to disassemble him where he stood, but found it quite hard to focus on _anything_ with the increasingly noisy chatter from the other two cores.

“Fact: Space isn’t real. It was created by politicians in 1873 to distract the population from the fact that they were lizard people.”

“Space? I’m gonna go back to space! Gotta go to space! Miss space, space is more fun!”

“Your delusions of going to space are, in fact, caused by a rare disease found only in rats, parrots, and most evergreens.”

With her head in her hands, GLaDOS begun to work on rewiring the chamber’s doors in hope of escaping. She only hoped she stayed sane long enough.


	29. More Alternate Universes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part 2 of a series of short glimpses into various alternate universes

**(These all requests were sparked by[this](http://ask-glados-queen-of-aperture.tumblr.com/post/164069821789/aus) post)**   
  


**14\. Serial killer**

_“Cara mia… Cara mia. Why do you run from me so? I’m doing this for science. It’s in both of our best interests if you’d only play along, mia bella.”_

Chell held her breath, feeling her heart pounding in her ears. She could only pray that she wouldn’t be found. But the slow approach of footsteps warned her that praying would do little good. The steps were quiet, almost like a cat’s, carefully stalking. But the only thing that gave it away, was the soft squelch that came with every movement. Bloody footsteps were left behind, and Chell knew, if she stopped running, her blood would be added to the mix.

She bit her hand to keep silent, and listened as the footsteps passed, and things grew silent. Slowly, she stood from where she was hiding, and released the breath she had been holding. It was time to get the hell out of here.

But the hand that grabbed her said otherwise. An iron grip, like a bear trap. Long, sharp fingernails dug into her skin, and hot, sticky blood smeared against her arm. She was pulled backwards, while another hand went to cover her mouth. There was no need, she couldn’t scream if she wanted to. All she could do was struggle, as she found herself pressed against an naturally warm body, and surrounded by the metallic stench of blood.

_“Found you~”_  
  
\-------------------------------------------  
  
 **12\. Nurse/soldier**  
  


Bedside manner is something that Chell would’ve liked. She had taken her fair amount of hits in this war, and a calm, comforting presence when she was getting those injuries patched up would’ve been nice.

But that wasn’t exactly what she got.

Her first encounter with this woman she hadn’t been paying much attention. She was merely grazed, and while it hurt, it was far from fatal. She had expected to just rest her head and let the nurse clean and stitch up her wound, either in silence, or perhaps with a few calm words of reassurance for a tired solider. Instead…

_“Idiot. If this bullet had just been a little closer to the left, you would’ve been completely out of commission. If you’re going to get hit, at least let it be fatal so you don’t have to waste my time with your scratches and bruises.”_

Chell had to do a double take, listening to this woman. She was young, maybe only a year or two older than Chell herself, and clearly still in her twenties. She had blonde hair that was cut at her shoulders, and piercing amber eyes. She wore a scowl on her face, eyeing Chell- and the injury she was cleaning- with disdain. As if Chell was _inconveniencing_ her.

For a moment, the solider had half a mind to mention that she was terribly sorry she got injured fighting to save their asses, but instead she simply let her head fall back on the pillow with a silent groan.

This war was a long fought one. And Chell kept getting hurt. And each time? She ended up with this nurse. She wondered if perhaps this was some kind of sick joke, but the nurse never mentioned any sort of obligation to tending to her in particular. It just seemed to be… coincidence.

Chell learned her name eventually- Gladys- and they started to adapt to the other’s presence. Gladys would talk while she worked, and while the subject of conversation was either insulting Chell or graphically describing what the injury could’ve been, and how deadly it might be. For some time, Chell wondered if the woman was actually threatening her.

But after interaction after interaction, she deemed it was just the way the woman worked. And in a way, Chell almost found herself enjoying the little interactions. It would give her a chance to smirk or roll her eyes at whatever Gladys said, and it frequently helped her ignore whatever was causing her pain.

She couldn’t say she looked forward to the circumstances that brought them together, but she had come to enjoy the consolation prize of Gladys’s company.

Until one day, she came to Gladys unconscious. Bloody, beaten, and broken. Only alive by a thread. And thus, she never did see Gladys cry while she worked instead of talking.  
  
\-------------------------------------------  
  
 **16\. Red string soulmate**  
  


A red string connects us. Maybe it always has, but neither of us noticed right away.

Soulmates. That’s what it indicates. Two people connected by this string are meant to be together. The string pulls the two closer and closer, and eventually, they realize their feelings, and live happily ever after.

That’s how it’s supposed to go, or so you’re told.

The string is a gentle tugging, gently, warmly pulling you closer to someone who will bring you true happiness.

It wraps around you, tying you both in and weaving you together forever.

So what happens when you use that string to try and strangle each other?


	30. Royalty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two young Royals find themselves building a bond that lasts for many years, and in time, the nature of their friendship begins to change.

**( This request was sparked by**[this](http://ask-glados-queen-of-aperture.tumblr.com/post/164069821789/aus) **post )**

 **2\. Royalty**  

Gladys was only doing this because mother and father were forcing her. Father had gone on and on about the importance of ‘building and nurturing strong bonds between yourself and other kingdoms’ and how ‘she needed to pay attention if she ever wanted to be a good leader.’ To be fair, she was listening. To at least half of what he said.

Mother had, of course, taken a more consoling route, informing her that the other king had a daughter around Gladys’s age, and it’d be good for her to make a friend. Gladys’s argued that she’d much rather be reading than hanging around with some kid she didn’t know. But in the end, her attempts were pointless, and she ended up going regardless.

She crossed her arms over her chest and bitterly stewed in her own head for the whole trip, staring out the carriage window and glaring at the passing scenery. If she had to come, then she was going to make it as miserable as she possibly could. Was this childish? Yes, as her mother informed her. But despite her relative maturity, she was still a child. A royal upbringing could only wring out so much childlike behaviors. Some things were unavoidable. Attitude seemed to be, in her case, one of them.

When they arrived, she was told rather sternly by her father to behave, and at least smile for the king when they met him. She had to stick around for awhile, but after dinner, she would be allowed to go play. She reluctantly agreed, knowing that nothing good could come out of messing this up for her father.

  
Dinner was long. And boring. The supposed daughter of this king hadn’t even been there, so it was just Gladys and a table full of adults. Gladys was doing her best to be very still, and sit up straight, and not to forget her manners. But the sun had long since set, and her father had already gone through at least two bottles of likely expensive wine.

Her annoyance must’ve crossed her face, as her mother- who was sitting next to her, carefully leaned over and gave a patient smile.

“I think you can be excused. You’ve done enough for today.”

Gladys just about leapt from her seat, and bounded out the door. She made a beeline for the hallway that had been pointed out to them on their way in, as she knew the room they’d be staying in was at the end of it, but as she made the sharp turn around the corner, she nearly bumped into someone.

“Hey! Watch where you’re going-”

She shut her mouth before she could finish her sentence, realizing that it was entirely possible she bumped into someone important.

But instead, it looked to be… a servant boy? She blinked, confused for a moment. A child, a little taller than she was, wearing slightly dirty tan clothes, that were ripped at the edges. He wore a hat, and Gladys could only see traces of dark brown hair peaking out from under it. His eyes were a grayish blue, but in the dim lighting of the hallway, they almost looked silver.

He looked her over, and suddenly, his eyes lit up, and he held his hand out to shake. Gladys’s eyed it with disdain. She wasn’t supposed to interact with servants. But…

With a noise of contempt, she accepted the handshake, scowling at the rough texture of the servant’s skin. She was quick to pull away, but the boy held on for a moment. She glared, and was about to speak up, even call for her mother, when she felt her arm being tugged.

The boy, who still hadn’t said a single word, was tugging her towards one of the archways, and if she remembered correctly, outside towards the courtyard.

“Let go of me!”

She snapped, pulling her arm away. But… she didn’t turn and leave. Perhaps it was the boringness of the evening rubbing off on her, but she was a little tempted to see what this ruffian wanted her to see. Maybe it’d be exciting. So… she followed.

Outside was a beautiful courtyard, filled with beautifully tended bushes, flowers and trees. Marble statues lined the edges, and in the middle, a pearly white fountain.

“Are you sure a servant like you is supposed to be somewhere this nice? Don’t you have animals to be cleaning up after or something?”

Gladys couldn’t help the sneer that came to her face as she watched the boy run forward into the open space of grass, throwing his arms into the air and grinning widely as he stared up at the stars.

Slowly, he turned his gaze back to Gladys, silently laughing at her statement. And, with one swift movement, pulled his hat off and tossed it to the side, revealing long hair. It wasn’t matted and dirty, as a matter of fact, it looked downright silky.

“You…”

Gladys opened her mouth, but her brain was still a step behind, processing all this. The “servant” pointed back to the castle, then back to themselves.

“You’re the princess I heard about?!”

Enthusiastic nodding followed this, as well as a toothy grin.

“So you mean to tell me you’re dressing up as a boy, running around and getting yourself all dirty?”

Another nod, but this time, followed by a hand gesture. Telling Gladys to join her. As if. Gladys didn’t know how things worked here, but where she came from, a princess wouldn’t be caught dead playing in the dirt.

But… watching the other girl climb a tree did look like fun. And… what did it matter, so long as she wasn’t caught?  
  
  
\-------------------------------------------  
  
**Royalty: Part 2**

“You can’t be serious.”

Gladys watched in disbelief as her friend stared down at her from the branches of the old oak tree, grinning and gesturing for her to follow.

“We aren’t little kids anymore Chell! I can’t be seen climbing trees in broad daylight! And in _your_ courtyard no less!”

Gladys shouted up at Chell, but received no response except a silent laugh from her companion. Ever since they had met eight years ago, their bond had grown. Their parents worked to create strong connections through their kingdoms, and Gladys and Chell were thankful for it. Each time one of them came to visit, it always seemed to end in the both of them getting into some kind of trouble. Which, Gladys noted, was almost always Chell’s idea.

The tomboyish child had grown into a tomboyish young adult, and even at seventeen years of age, she still hadn’t given up her habit of throwing on ratty clothes and running around like the common folk. She’d roll around on the grass with the castle dogs, play with the horses, climb trees, and worst of all? She brought Gladys into it all.

Gladys, who wore nice dresses, and preferred to keep her nose in a book, somehow always ended up halfway to the top of a tree, or on the back of a donkey desperately clutching to Chell for dear life.

Today though, she stood firm, with her arms crossed tightly over her chest. She was here for her sixteenth birthday, celebrating with Chell’s family. And that meant her mother would most definitely have her head if she managed to destroy the very expensive dress she was currently wearing.

Chell gave a heaving sigh, and reluctantly climbed back down, sticking her tongue out at Gladys and starting to walk towards the fountain, which Gladys happily followed her in doing. When they weren’t following Chell’s lead and acting like ruffians, they would sit at the edge of the fountain and just talk. Sure, Gladys did most of the talking, but Chell was a good listener, and the small comments she’d add were always interesting to hear.

This time however, Chell didn’t sit down. She turned to face Gladys with the fountain behind her. Her face had softened, and she scratched the back of her head nervously for a moment before speaking.

“…I’m glad you’re here. It’s been awhile since we’ve been able to just spend time together, so I thought we should take advantage of that. Tomorrow you’re going back home, and I don’t know when I’ll be able to visit you.”

Gladys couldn’t help the small smile that crossed her face as she listened to Chell, enjoying the sound of her surprisingly soft tone.

“And since it could be awhile, I know you’re going to be all uptight and proper until we hang out again. So I was thinking that it’d be good for you to let loose a little.”

Gladys scoffed, rolling her eyes as she listened to Chell talk, butting in before her friend could finish speaking.

“I am not uptight, I’m just going to be a better leader than you are-”

She didn’t have a chance to finish her sentence, as what Chell had said dawned on her, and she paused, looking up into the woman’s eyes and knowing exactly what she’d see. A sparkle of mischief.

Gladys wasn’t given enough time to say ‘Don’t you dare’ before Chell had grabbed her wrists and pulled her forward, resulting in the both of them landing in the fountain behind her with a loud splash.

The water wasn’t more than a foot and a half deep, but it was cool and crisp, and resulted in quite the shock as Gladys came in contact with it, letting out a loud squeak of surprise. She had landed on top of Chell, which mercifully saved her from the full brunt of the water, but she still found herself sufficiently soaked.

_“You…you lunatic!”_

She glared down at Chell, who had thrown her head back with laughter. She was completely drenched, her long, dark brown hair splayed out in the water.

Gladys smacked her on the shoulder, fighting the urge to let a small laugh escape her as well. No, this was not funny. She refused to give Chell the satisfaction. She struggled to hold her glare, meeting Chell’s silvery gaze with her own amber one.

Her anger faded, as well as Chell’s laughter. She stared back at Gladys, a smile still on her face, but more sheepish. She had meant well, and while Gladys was sure to make sure she got Chell back for this- mainly making sure that her mother chewed Chell out instead of her, since this was most definitely not her fault- but she had to admit, the water felt somewhat nice in comparison to the hot summer day.

And… Gladys found herself becoming aware of her current position. On top of Chell, with their faces only inches apart. Silence hung between them for several long, heavy moments. Only the sound of their breathing and the fountain gurgling filled their ears. Gladys reckoned that she really ought to move, climb off Chell and attempt to dry off in the sun. But she didn’t. She expected her friend to playfully throw her off into the water, but instead?

Chell leaned forward, and kissed her.

Gladys’s heart all but stopped, and she froze in place as she felt the other woman’s soft lips against her own. It was a light brush of skin, and Chell only held there for a couple seconds at most. But it was long enough to be anything but an accident.

Chell pulled away just enough to break the contact, but still lingered close, her grey-blue eyes hopeful, and surprisingly… nervous. She looked as if she was seeking approval from Gladys.

“…We can’t.”

Gladys barely managed to choke this out past the lump in her throat, feeling her heart hammering in her chest. What if someone came out here and found them? What if their parents knew? What if rumors started? What if-

She kissed Chell back.

Despite her knowledge of just how much they ought not to be doing this, she threw caution to the wind. It was reckless. It was dangerous. If they were caught, she had no idea just how much trouble they could get into. But god did Chell’s lips feel nice.

She felt Chell’s arms wrap around her, only serving to further soak Gladys’s dress as she was pulled even closer. One of Chell’s hands found its way to the back of her head, and the other rested at the small of her back. The kiss was no longer light and chaste, and she melted into the warmth it generated, relishing every second. Time seemed to stop, and for a moment, she forgot where they were. In a courtyard. In broad daylight.

Distant footsteps and a calling of her name reached her ears, and in a mild panic, she threw herself off Chell, scrambling to get out of the water as quickly as possible. Chell seemed to follow her example, seeming genuinely flustered for once.

Gladys glanced over her shoulder, to see her mother in the distance, walking over to them. She turned to walk in that direction, but paused.

“… Meet me tonight.”

She locked eyes with Chell for one more brief moment, before hurrying off to meet with her mother and try to create the most believable lie possible. Her heart was still pounding, and she could only hope she could pass the redness in her face off as a result of the summer heat.


	31. Masquerade

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> anonymous asked:
> 
> For an interesting prompt: masquerade party. Both chell and Glados attend in masks not recognizing each other until after they've danced and are dumbstruck because they're on hostile ground and why is this person so alluring all of the sudden...

This was all ridiculous. Gladys strongly believed that.  
  
She understood the need to get funding for Aperture, she was well aware of the financial situation that Aperture was in.  She wouldn’t have even rolled her eyes too much at a normal black-tie event to look pretty for potential investors.   
  
But this? This was absurd.   
  
A masquerade, Cave had suggested. It would be perfect, he said. Interesting enough to create buzz, but formal enough to keep up a reputation.  Caroline had, of course, agreed with him. And Gladys, being a lead scientist, found herself with an invitation.   
  
She had argued with Caroline for hours when she first found out, protesting to the idea of being sent out to chat up living sacks of money.  However, to her surprise, Caroline had openly admitted that wasn’t the reason Cave was sending her. He was there to talk to investors, along with Caroline and a few others. Gladys was there to talk to the other guests.   
  
Potential test subjects.  If they seemed like they could be someone that Aperture would want- athletes and olympians being the preferred options- then they got an invitation.  Then, Gladys and the other scientists were to entice them in the same way that Cave intended to do for investors. Except instead of money, they’d be giving Aperture their bodies.   
  
This information had been enough to get Gladys to agree to go, as she was admittedly interested in seeing what test subjects she might get to run through her program.   
  
However, as the night of the event was upon her, she was reminded why she had been against this idea in the first place.   
  
Gladys liked to know who she was speaking to. She liked having files on near everyone she spoke to so that no matter what, they could not surprise her. She would always be one step ahead, knowing them better than they knew themselves.   
  
A masquerade made that incredibly difficult.   
  
She had a limited knowledge of the guests who would be there, but hadn’t been granted access to the full list.  All she was told was where to be, and what her end goal was. How she got there was up to her.   
  
  
With a small huff of annoyance, she stood outside the doors to one of the conference rooms that had been transformed into the ballroom, hand lingering on the door.   
  
She could do this. She didn’t like not being able to know these people, but at least they couldn’t know her.   
  
Pulling her mask down to rest in place, she opened the door and stepped into the the mass of people, trying not to lose herself to the mindless sound of music and chatter combined.   
  
  
  
The first couple hours passed without anything of interest. A few glasses of champagne to keep herself sane, a few successful attempts to chat up soon-to-be test subjects with more brawn than brains.  They spoke loudly to let their voices reach over the music, boasting about their athletic accomplishments, and sometimes going so far as introducing themselves- clearly missing the point of a masked event.   
  
Gladys treated them all the same: offer them a smile, some well twisted words, and perhaps even a dance, if they looked like they needed extra encouragement.   
  
While a promise to see their applications within the next week was certainly satisfying, Gladys hadn’t exactly been having fun.  She didn’t think she was supposed to, but sparing one glance towards where she knew Cave and Caroline to be proved that she might be the only one who thought that way.   
  
Her boss seemed to be having the time of his life, and she even noticed Caroline cracking a smile from time to time, or a hint of laughter that was quickly hidden behind her hand.   
  
Well good for them, Gladys thought bitterly.  Cave was a social man, and Caroline was seemingly content doing just about anything, so long as Cave wasn’t doing something reckless.   
  
Gladys, on the other hand, had higher standards of entertainment. She could be doing science right now.  She could be reviewing the reports that came back on the long-fall boots, or looking over the blueprints on the next prototype for the portal gun. She could be getting so much work done right now, and that would be ten times more interesting than-   
  
She was snapped out of her thoughts by the feeling of a pair of eyes on her. That on its own meant nothing- she was well aware of how hungry eyes that followed the lines of her low-cut black dress had been staring at her throughout the evening- but something about this was different.   
  
As Gladys brought her gaze up to meet the eyes in question, she found herself almost taken aback.   
  
Sharp, silvery grey eyes that seemed to look into her very soul. They held a heat within them that burned with intrigue, a look of awareness and intelligence that Gladys hadn’t expected to see from anyone tonight.   
  
The woman was dressed in nice enough clothes, a suit that didn’t look terribly expensive, but molded itself to its wearer’s body incredibly well. Her face was partially covered by a mask that matched the colors of her suit, simply painted with no excess adornments to distract from the simplicity. She was clearly not an investor, as her build alone gave away plenty to Gladys.   
  
A lean form, well built and muscled, holding herself high and at the ready with the attentiveness of a soldier, yet with a stance that seemed to radiate independence that didn’t come from someone who had been through the military.   
  
If not for the figure’s outstretched hand-presumably waiting to shake her hand- Gladys would’ve forgotten to speak, as her pre-prepared speech for everyone she met suddenly seemed to fail her, and she could hardly remember a word of it.   
  
“Good evening. I take it you’ve been enjoying yourself?”   
  
A polite nod in response, though Gladys didn’t miss the hint of a shrug that came with it.   
  
“Well I’m a scientist here at Aperture Science, and I take it that you must be-”   
  
Gladys was cut off mid-sentence.  She had taken the outstretched hand as she spoke, expecting a handshake, yet finding herself very surprised when she realized that the figure held her hand instead, surprisingly gingerly, and gestured to the dancefloor without a word.   
  
Well. That was bold.   
  
Gladys blinked, before a slow smile crossed her lips.  She liked bold. Bold was _interesting._   
  
  
Slowly, she allowed herself to be pulled into the fray of dancers, only vaguely taking note of the song that was playing, and instead finding herself more focused on the rhythm.   
  
Her newfound dance partner wasted no time slipping into position, keeping one of Gladys’s hands held in her own, while her other hand rested comfortably on Gladys’s back.  Not too low, but not too high either.   
  
Gladys could feel callouses on the woman’s hands, leaving them slightly rough to the touch, and stark contrast of her own, which were smooth and soft from a lifetime of watching other people do the physical labor.   
  
The closer she got, the more she realized how badly she wanted this woman. -As a _test subject._  She wanted her as a test subject.   
  
She was clearly strong, yet showed no signs of being a complete meathead. She was aware of her surroundings, managing to easily avoid bumping into less talented and more intoxicated dancers, and most of all?  She just seemed to… fit.   
  
Something about the stranger just radiated _Aperture._ Something about her got Gladys practically tingling with excitement at the thought of all the tests she could run with her.  She didn’t feel like the others. She didn’t feel like she’d just give up. She would be the perfect fit… so long as Gladys could actually remember to talk to her and convince her to send in an application.   
  
As even when the first song ended, Gladys found that she didn’t try to coax the woman back to the sidelines to start chatting her up, finding the very thought to be so disinteresting that it was brushed away without debate. Instead, as the next song began- slower than the last- she found herself leaning a little closer.   
  
What had been somewhat stiff, calculated movements before slowly became more and more loose, as Gladys slowly stopped caring about the act of perfectly pulling off each move, and simply moved to the beat of her partner’s movements.   
  
Quicker than she liked to admit, she relaxed into it. Finding that time started to slip through her fingers as the two of them moved through song after song, each time allowing themselves to move closer and closer, to the point where Gladys hardly noticed that she was pressed against her partner’s chest, and that the mysterious stranger’s hand had moved to the small of her back, where it now rested, dangerously shifting in a motion too frequent not to be intentional.  In return, Gladys had allowed her leg to occasionally slip, pressing forward against the stranger. Brief enough to not break the flow of their movements, but distinct enough to make itself known.   
  
Gladys knew her cheeks were flushed a dark red at this point, and was genuinely thankful for her mask for keeping that mostly hidden.  Somewhere, in the back of her mind, she remembered why she was here. That now was a good of a time as any to pull this woman aside and rope her into Aperture. Yet, as their fifth song together slowly faded out, she found herself… reluctant.   
  
Those grey eyes had been on her this whole time, burning into Gladys and sending a heat that had only grown in intensity as time went on. She hadn’t even noticed that her partner hadn’t said a word this whole time, but she didn’t have to. It was unspoken between them, shared in each moment that their eyes met.   
  
Slowly, she leaned in closer, so that her lips were a breath away from the woman’s ear, allowing her to say what she needed to without anyone around them hearing it.   
  
_“Come with me.”_   
  
Pulling back just enough to meet the stranger’s gaze, she got her answer.   
  
A glimmer of excitement in those silver eyes, followed by the slightest twitch of her lips upwards.   
  
Without another word, Gladys lead her off the dancefloor, to the outskirts of the room where she _knew_ she ought to stop and start talking, and then out the door, and down an adjacent hallway.   
  
She had been bored earlier, but not now.  Now her heart was hammering in her ears as she pushed this _complete_ stranger- she tried not to think about that part- against the wall of the dark, currently unused hallway, and pressed their lips together.   
  
It was hot, messy, and _exactly_ what she had been craving. Perhaps it was the champagne, perhaps it was the fact that it had been _so long_ , but Gladys found her better judgement thrown out the window as she sucked on her partner’s bottom lip, earning a wordless sigh of encouragement, and prompting hands to snake back around her waist, pulling her closer.   
  
They broke apart for breath for only a brief moment, neither one of them wishing to do more than gasp for air as quickly as possible before clashing back together, lips and tongues seeming almost violent in how aggressively they were pressed against the other. It was exciting, intoxicating, and… familiar.   
  
Gladys brushed the thought aside at first, wanting to focus her full attention on the task at hand, yet it started to nag at her.   
  
As those calloused hands tangled themselves in her hair, as those lips- slightly chapped- moved from her lips to her neck, to a very specific spot on her neck, causing Gladys’s back to arch and a soft vocalization to escape her.   
  
It was all _familiar._ Like she had felt this before.   
  
  
She moved her hands away from her partner’s chest- where they had already started to undo the first three buttons- and brought them to the stranger’s face, coaxing her head upwards and away from her neck.  Her fingers slipped underneath the strap of the mask, and in one, swift movement, she pulled the mask off.   
  
And promptly after, dropped it to the floor.   
  
_“You.”_   
  
The face that greeted her was one that she should’ve recognized sooner. She should’ve known from the moment those eyes met hers.   
  
And, judging by the way the _stranger’s_ expression was painted with confusion, Gladys had the feeling that she wasn’t the only one who had failed to recognize an old flame.   
  
Or, more accurately, a bitter ex.   
  
Pulling herself back, Gladys pulled her own mask off, tossing it to the side with a clatter, and meeting this woman- no, Chell’s- gaze once more, so that she could watch the dawning realization flicker into those silver eyes with no mask to distract them.   
  
The heat in the air between them had shifted from a comfortable warmth to something more akin to being burnt alive, as the two of them stared the other down, with only the heaving sounds of their breathing echoing through the hallway.   
  
Gladys had thought about this moment for a long time. What she would do if she ever saw Chell’s face in Aperture again.   
  
She thought about slapping her, or downright strangling her. Screaming at her, or perhaps leaving her in icy silence.   
  
She had not foreseen the surge of heat in her stomach that pushed her forward once more, so that her face was once again only inches away from Chell’s, as she uttered only three words-   
  
_“I hate you.”_   
  
\- before kissing her again.   



End file.
